Judge: Cherol J. Nellon, Case: 22STCV20651, Date: 2023-05-08 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: 22STCV20651    Hearing Date: May 8, 2023    Dept: 28

Petitioner Kevin Kuechel’s Petition for Relief from GC § 945.4

Having considered the moving, opposing and reply papers, the Court rules as follows.

BACKGROUND

On June 23, 2023, Petitioner Kevin Kuechel (“Petitioner”) filed a Petition for Relief from GC § 945.4 against Respondent Los Angeles Unified School District (“Respondent”). The Court set a hearing date on this petition for May 8, 2023.

On April 25, 2023, Respondent filed an opposition. On May 1, 2023, Petitioner filed a reply.

Trial is currently scheduled for December 21, 2023.

PARTY’S REQUESTS

Petitioner request the Court grants relief from the requirements of the claims act to allow them to proceed with the filing of a lawsuit.

Respondent requests the Court reject the petition.

LEGAL STANDARD

Under Cal. Gov. Code § 946.6 “(a) If an application for leave to present a claim is denied or deemed to be denied pursuant to Section 911.6, a petition may be made to the court for an order relieving the petitioner from Section 945.4. The proper court for filing the petition is a superior court that would be a proper court for the trial of an action on the cause of action to which the claim relates. If the petition is filed in a court which is not a proper court for the determination of the matter, the court, on motion of any party, shall transfer the proceeding to a

proper court. If an action on the cause of action to which the claim relates would be a limited civil case, a proceeding pursuant to this section is a limited civil case.

(b) The petition shall show each of the following:(1) That application was made to the board under Section 911.4 and was denied or deemed denied. (2) The reason for failure to present the claim within the time limit specified in Section 911.2.(3) The information required by Section 910. The petition shall be filed within six months after the application to the board is denied or deemed to be denied pursuant to Section 911.6.

(c) The court shall relieve the petitioner from the requirements of Section 945.4 if the court finds that the application to the board under Section 911.4 was made within a reasonable time not to exceed that specified in subdivision (b) of Section 911.4 and was denied or deemed denied pursuant to Section 911.6 and that one or more of the following is applicable:(1) The failure to present the claim was through mistake, inadvertence, surprise, or excusable neglect unless the public entity establishes that it would be prejudiced in the defense of the claim if the court relieves the petitioner from the requirements of Section 945.4.(2) The person who sustained the alleged injury, damage, or loss was a minor during all of the time specified in Section 911.2 for the presentation of the claim.(3) The person who sustained the alleged injury, damage, or loss was a minor during any of the time specified in Section 911.2 for the presentation of the claim, provided the application is presented within six months of the person turning 18 years of age or a year after the claim accrues, whichever occurs first.(4) The person who sustained the alleged injury, damage, or loss was physically or mentally incapacitated during all of the time specified in Section 911.2 for the presentation of the claim and by reason of that disability failed to present a claim during that time.(5) The person who sustained the alleged injury, damage, or loss was physically or mentally incapacitated during any of the time specified in Section 911.2 for the presentation of the claim and by reason of that disability failed to present a claim during that time, provided the application is presented within six months of the person no longer being physically or mentally incapacitated, or a year after the claim accrues, whichever occurs first.(6) The person who sustained the alleged injury, damage, or loss died before the expiration of the time specified in Section 911.2 for the presentation of the claim.”

DISCUSSION

This action arises from an incident that occurred on August 10, 2021, meaning a timely claim needed to be filed by February 8, 2022. Petitioner claims counsel deposited the claim in a

public mailbox on February 2, 2022, believing it would be delivered by the date. The claim was not postmarked until February 24, 2022; it was received on March 1, 2022. Petitioner’s claim was denied on March 10, 2022, as a late claim. Petitioner filed an application for leave to present a late claim less than two weeks later, which was subsequently denied. This petition was filed 3 months after the first denial.

Petitioner submitted the claim within the 1 year late filing period. This petition was filed within the 6-month post-denial filing period. Petitioner’s claim was denied due to untimeliness. According to Petitioner’s counsel’s declaration, the failure to present the claim was due to inadvertence or excusable neglect, as historically, sending mail via this method resulted in an arrival 2-4 days after placing the envelope in the mail.

Respondent argues this is not excusable neglect, as Petitioner’s counsel sent out the mail close to the deadline, despite being retained for months. The Court disagrees—it was reasonable for counsel to assume that mail placed in a proper mailbox would be swiftly processed and delivered. It is uncommon for paper mail to take over a month to arrive, especially when within the same state; it is more likely that there was an incident with the actual mail processing or delivery resulting in a substantial delay. As there is no dispute that counsel placed the claim into the mail approximately a week before the deadline, the Court finds that any delay was due to inadvertence or excusable neglect. The Court grant the motion.

CONCLUSION

Petitioner Kevin Kuechel’s Petition for Relief from GC § 945.4 is GRANTED.

Moving party is ordered to give notice of this ruling.

Moving Party is ordered to file the proof of service of this ruling with the Court within five days.

The parties are directed to the header of this tentative ruling for further instructions.