Judge: Cherol J. Nellon, Case: 23STCV28694, Date: 2024-04-11 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: 23STCV28694    Hearing Date: April 11, 2024    Dept: 14

Hozumi v. Tanaka

Case Background

Plaintiff alleges that he agreed to invest money in a camping business which Defendants were to run, but only until Plaintiff received a work visa in the United States. Plaintiff claims that Defendants refused to provide financial records when he arrived to take over the business.

On November 27, 2023, Plaintiff filed his Complaint for (1) Breach of Contract and (2) Accounting against Defendants Tanaka’s Camp, LLC (“Camp”), Ayu Tanaka (“Tanaka”), and DOES 1-10.

            No trial date has yet been set.

Instant Pleading

            Defendant Tanaka now demurs to the Complaint on the grounds that it fails to state facts sufficient to support any cause of action.

Decision

            The demurrer is SUSTAINED, with 30 days leave to amend.

Discussion

            Plaintiff has not properly pled a contract. Plaintiff does not clearly allege whether the contract was written, oral, or implied by conduct. See Otworth v. Southern Pac. Transportation Co. (1985) 166 Cal.App.3d 452, 458-459 (implicitly overruled on other grounds as recognized by Miles v. Deutsche Bank National Trust Company (2015) 236 Cal.App.4^th 394, 401-402). More importantly, Plaintiff does not allege all the terms of the contract. The complaint does not say what Defendant Tanaka was to get in return for running this company, or how the transition was to occur, or what was to happen afterwards.

            Because Plaintiff has not properly pled the contractual relationship, Plaintiff has failed to properly plead the basis for an accounting.