Judge Armen Tamzarian, Case Number: 23STCV21265, Date: 2025-02-14 Tentative Ruling

Judge: Armen Tamzarian, Case: 23STCV21265, Date: 2025-02-14 Tentative Ruling

Please notify Department 52 via email at smcdept52@lacourt.org and indicate that the parties are submitting on the tentative ruling. Please provide the attorney's name and represented party. Please notify the opposing side via email if submitting on the Court's tentative ruling.

Case Number: 23STCV21265 Hearing Date: February 14, 2025 Dept: 52

Tentative Ruling:

Plaintiffs Jacob Ongwiseth and Nipith Ongwiseth’s Motion for Order Establishing Admissions and Motions to Compel Discovery Responses

Motion to Deem Matters Admitted

Plaintiffs Jacob Ongwiseth and Nipith Ongwiseth move for an order deeming admitted the truth of the matters specified in requests for admission, set one, to defendants Saman Sinai and Shirin Sinai.

When a party fails to serve a timely response to requests for admission, the requesting party may move for an order that the genuineness of any documents and the truth of any matters specified in the requests be deemed admitted. (Code Civ. Proc., § 2033.280, subd. (b).) An order deeming matters admitted is mandatory “unless [the court] finds that the party to whom the requests for admission have been directed has served, before the hearing on the motion, a proposed response to the requests for admission that is in substantial compliance with Section 2033.220.” (Id., subd. (c).)

Defendants Saman Sinai and Shirin Sinai failed to serve a timely response to plaintiffs’ requests for admission, set one. They each served untimely verified responses on January 29, 2025. (Day Decl., ¶ 3.) Their responses substantially comply with the Civil Discovery Act. They did not object. Their responses each consist of solely the word “Admit” or “Deny.” The court therefore cannot deem the matters admitted.

Plaintiffs moves for $4,340 in sanctions against defendants. “It is mandatory that the court impose a monetary sanction … on the party or attorney, or both, whose failure to serve a timely response to requests for admission necessitated [a] motion” to deem matters admitted. (Code Civ. Proc., § 2033.280, subd. (c). Unlike the analogous provisions for other discovery motions, this subdivision makes no exception for a responding party who acted with substantial justification. (See, e.g., Code Civ. Proc., §§ 2030.290, subd. (c), 2031.300, subd. (c).) Defendants failed to serve timely responses to plaintiffs’ requests for admission. Their failure to do so necessitated plaintiffs’ motion.

Plaintiffs did not, however, reasonably incur all expenses claimed for the motion. They request $4,350 in sanctions for eight hours of attorney fees at $535 hourly, plus the $60 filing fee. (Dreblow Decl., ¶¶ 9-11.) This simple motion did not reasonably require eight hours of attorney fees. Those eight hours include an estimated four hours to analyze the opposition and draft a reply brief. (Ibid.) The opposition provided little to analyze. Defendants argued two things. First, they argued they ultimately served substantially compliant responses. Plaintiffs’ reply brief did not address that issue. Second, the opposition argued the amount of sanctions requested was excessive. Plaintiffs’ reply brief addressed the issue, but it required little analysis.

The court finds that plaintiffs reasonably incurred four hours of attorney fees at $535 hourly, plus the $60 filing fee, for a total of $2,200 in expenses.

Motions to Compel Discovery Responses

Plaintiffs move to compel defendants Saman Sinai and Shirin Sinai to respond to form interrogatories, special interrogatories, and requests for production. After plaintiffs filed this motion, defendants served responses. The motion is therefore moot except as to sanctions. Plaintiffs contend the untimely responses are insufficient. The court exercises its discretion not to address the responses’ substance. (See Sinaiko Healthcare Consulting, Inc. v. Pacific Healthcare Consultants (2007) 148 Cal.App.4th 390, 409.)

Plaintiffs are entitled to sanctions. “The court may award sanctions under the Discovery Act in favor of a party who files a motion to compel discovery, even though no opposition to the motion was filed, or opposition to the motion was withdrawn, or the requested discovery was provided to the moving party after the motion was filed.” (Cal. Rules of Court, rule 3.1348(a).) Failing to respond to an authorized method of discovery is a misuse of the discovery process subject to monetary sanctions. (Code Civ. Proc., § 2023.010, subd. (d).) Defendants did not act with substantial justification. Plaintiffs were not required to wait indefinitely for defendants to respond. And, though they were not required to meet and confer, plaintiffs did so. Sanctions are just under the circumstances.

Plaintiffs did not reasonably incur all expenses claimed for the motions. In each motion, they seek $2,735 in sanctions for five hours of attorney fees at $535 hourly, plus the $60 filing fee. (Dreblow Decls., ¶¶ 9-11.) These simple and duplicative motions and the combined reply brief did reasonably require five hours of attorney fees. The finds that, on each of these three motions, plaintiffs reasonably incurred 2.5 hours of attorney fees at $535 hourly, plus the $60 filing fee, for a total of $1,397.50 in expenses.

Disposition

Plaintiffs Jacob Ongwiseth and Nipith Ongwiseth’s motion to deem matters admitted is granted in part as to sanctions only. Defendants Saman Sinai and Shirin Sinai are ordered to pay plaintiffs $2,200 in sanctions within 20 days.

Plaintiffs Jacob Ongwiseth and Nipith Ongwiseth’s motion to compel responses to form interrogatories is granted in part as to sanctions only. Defendants Saman Sinai and Shirin Sinai are ordered to pay plaintiffs $1,397.50 in sanctions within 20 days.

Plaintiffs Jacob Ongwiseth and Nipith Ongwiseth’s motion to compel responses to special interrogatories is granted in part as to sanctions only. Defendants Saman Sinai and Shirin Sinai are ordered to pay plaintiffs $1,397.50 in sanctions within 20 days.

Plaintiffs Jacob Ongwiseth and Nipith Ongwiseth’s motion to compel responses to requests for production is granted in part as to sanctions only. Defendants Saman Sinai and Shirin Sinai are ordered to pay plaintiffs $1,397.50 in sanctions within 20 days.