Judge: Audra Mori, Case: 21STCV20998, Date: 2022-10-20 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: 21STCV20998    Hearing Date: October 20, 2022    Dept: 31

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

FOR THE COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES - CENTRAL DISTRICT

Defendant Proheader, Inc. (“Defendant”) propounded form interrogatories, set one, special interrogatories, set one, and request for production of documents (“RPDs”), set one, on each of Henry Chiao (“Chiao”) and Gloria Kao (“Kao”) on January 7, 2022.  To date, despite an attempt to meet and confer, neither Chiao nor Kao has served responses.  Defendant therefore seeks an order compelling Chia and Kao to each respond, without objections, to the outstanding discovery and to pay sanctions.

Defendant’s motions are unopposed and granted.  Chiao and Kao are each ordered to serve verified responses to form interrogatories, set one, special interrogatories, set one, and RPDs, set one, without objections, within ten days.  (CCP §§ 2030.290(a),(b), 2031.300(a),(b).)

Sanctions are mandatory unless the Court finds the one subject to sanctions acted with substantial justifications or other circumstances make the imposition of sanctions unjust.  (CCP §§ 2030.290(c), 2031.300(c).)  The notice of motion for each of Defendant’s motion states that Defendant seeks sanctions against plaintiffs Chiao and Kao.  Defendant does not describe any conduct warranting sanctions against Chiao and Kao personally.  Rather, the evidence shows that the subject discovery requests were served, and the meet and confer attempts were made with, plaintiffs Chiao’s and Kao’s counsel.  Defendant, however, does not request sanctions against Plaintiffs’ counsel in the notices of motion.  No sanctions are awarded.

Moving Defendant is ordered to give notice. 

PLEASE TAKE NOTICE:

• Parties are encouraged to meet and confer after reading this tentative ruling to see if they can reach an agreement.
• If a party intends to submit on this tentative ruling, the party must send an email to the court at sscdept31@lacourt.org with the Subject line “SUBMIT” followed by the case number.  The body of the email must include the hearing date and time, counsel’s contact information, and the identity of the party submitting.  
• Unless all parties submit by email to this tentative ruling, the parties should arrange to appear remotely (encouraged) or in person for oral argument.  You should assume that others may appear at the hearing to argue.  
• If the parties neither submit nor appear at hearing, the Court may take the motion off calendar or adopt the tentative ruling as the order of the Court.  After the Court has issued a tentative ruling, the Court may prohibit the withdrawal of the subject motion without leave. 

Dated this 20^th day of October 2022