Judge: Audra Mori, Case: 21STCV36923, Date: 2022-10-26 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: 21STCV36923    Hearing Date: October 26, 2022    Dept: 31

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

FOR THE COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES - CENTRAL DISTRICT

Defendant Sanchez Family Corporation (“Defendant”) propounded form interrogatories, set one, special interrogatories, set one, and request for production of documents (“RPDs”), set one, on Plaintiff Natalia Gutierrez (“Plaintiff”) on March 15, 2022.  To date, despite an attempt to meet and confer, Plaintiff has not served responses.  Defendant therefore seeks an order compelling Plaintiff to respond, without objections, to the outstanding discovery and to pay sanctions.

Defendant’s motions are unopposed and granted.  Plaintiff is ordered to serve verified responses to form interrogatories, set one, special interrogatories, set one, and RPDs, set one, without objections, within fifteen (15) days.  (CCP §§ 2030.290(a), (b), 2031.300(a), (b).)

Sanctions are mandatory.  (CCP §§ 2030.290(c), 2031.300(c).)  Defendant is awarded one hour for preparing each form motion to compel [three hours] and one hour to appear at the hearing- but awards this time once- all at the reasonable rate of $200 per hour, for a total of $800 in attorney fees.  Further, Defendant is awarded three motion filing fees of $60, or $180 total, as costs. 

Defendant seeks sanctions against Plaintiff and Plaintiff’s attorney of record.  Defendant does not describe any conduct warranting sanctions against Plaintiff personally.  The evidence shows the discovery requests were served on, and the made and confer attempt was made with, Plaintiff’s counsel, but Plaintiff’s counsel did not respond.  Sanctions are imposed against Plaintiff’s attorney of record only.  Plaintiff’s counsel is ordered to pay sanctions to Defendant, by and through counsel of record, in the total amount of $980.00, within thirty (30) days.

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 26^th day of October 2022