Judge Daniel M. Crowley, Case Number: 21STCV47266, Date: 2024-09-17 Tentative Ruling

All parties are urged to meet and confer with all parties concerning this tentative ruling to see if they can reach an agreed-upon resolution of their matter.  If you are able to reach an agreement, please notify the courtroom staff in advance of the hearing if you wish to submit on the tentative ruling rather than argue the motion by notifying the court by e-mailing the court at: SMCDEPT71@lacourt.org. Do not click on the email address, either copy and paste it or type it into your email. Include the word "SUBMITS" in all caps and the Case Number in the Subject line. In the body of the email, please provide the date and time of the hearing, your name, your contact information, the party you represent, and whether that party is a plaintiff, defendant, cross-complainant, cross-defendant, claimant, intervenor, or non-party, etc.

            Please be advised that if you submit on the tentative and elect not to appear at the hearing, the opposing party may still appear at the hearing and argue the matter, and the court could change its tentative based upon the argument.  Unless you receive a submission from all other parties in the matter, you should assume that others might appear at the hearing to argue. If you submit, but still intend to appear, include the words "SUBMITS, BUT WILL APPEAR" in the Subject line.

            If you elect to argue your matter, you are urged to do so remotely, via Court-Connect. If the moving party fails to appear and/or submit to the Court’s tentative ruling, the Court will take the matter off calendar.

            Note that once the Court has issued a tentative, the Court has the inherent authority not to allow the withdrawal of a motion and to adopt the tentative ruling as the order of the court.

If you submitted a courtesy copy of your papers containing media (such as a DVD or thumb drive), unless you request the return of the media in your papers, the court will destroy it following the hearing of your matter.

Plaintiff Tyrone Murphy’s unopposed motion for leave to amend his second amended complaint is denied, without prejudice.

Plaintiff Tyrone Murphy (“Murphy”) (“Plaintiff”) moves unopposed to amend his second amended complaint (“SAC”).

Plaintiff filed his initial Complaint on December 29, 2021, against Mr. and Mrs. Amelia Sorotro (“Sorortro”) and AAA Car Insurance. CA (“AAA”) (collectively, “Defendants”). Plaintiff filed his first amended complaint (“FAC”) on October 7, 2022. Plaintiff filed the operative SAC on November 2, 2022. Plaintiff filed an amendment to the SAC on November 7, 2022, correcting the name of Defendant Sorotro to Mrs. Rosa Sortro (“Sortro”).

Plaintiff has attempted to file multiple documents with this Court that have been rejected by the clerk on the basis the filings are not written in the proper format required by California Rules of Court, Rule 2.100. Therefore, Plaintiff’s rejected filings are not available to this Court.

The California Rules of Court require documents filed with the Court to be in the following format:

Rule 2.102. One-sided paper: When papers are not filed electronically, only one side of each page may be used.

Rule 2.104. Font size; printing: Unless otherwise specified in these rules, all papers filed must be prepared using a font size not smaller than 12 points. All papers not filed electronically must be printed or typewritten or be prepared by a photocopying or other duplication process that will produce clear and permanent copies equally as legible as printing.

(1) In the space commencing 1 inch from the top of the page with line 1, to the left of the center of the page, the name, office address or, if none, residence address or mailing address (if different), telephone number, fax number and e-mail address . . . of the party if he or she is appearing in person. The inclusion of a fax number or e-mail address on any document does not constitute consent to service by fax or e-mail unless otherwise provided by law.

(2) In the first 2 inches of space between lines 1 and 7 to the right of the center of the page, a blank space for the use of the clerk.

(3) On line 8, at or below 3 1/3 inches from the top of the page, the title of the court.

(4) Below the title of the court, in the space to the left of the center of the page, the title of the case. In the title of the case on each initial complaint or cross-complaint, the name of each party must commence on a separate line beginning at the left margin of the page. On any subsequent pleading or paper, it is sufficient to provide a short title of the case (1) stating the name of the first party on each side, with appropriate indication of other parties . . ..

(6) Below the number of the case, the nature of the paper and, on all complaints and petitions, the character of the action or proceeding. In a case having multiple parties, any answer, response, or opposition must specifically identify the complaining, propounding, or moving party and the complaint, motion, or other matter being answered or opposed.

(7) Below the nature of the paper or the character of the action or proceeding, the name of the judge and department, if any, to which the case is assigned.

Plaintiff’s request before the Court was not filed with the Court because the document Plaintiff attempted to file did not meet the requirements stated in the California Rules of Court. Plaintiff cannot submit to this Court handwritten documents; Rule 2.104 requires all documents to be typed, not handwritten. Additionally, this Court cannot accept filings in the format of a letter.

Plaintiff is directed to Rule 2.111 for instructions on the format of the first page of a filing with this Court. Rule 2.111 requires the first page to include in the upper lefthand corner the name, address, telephone number, fax number and e-mail address of the party. Beneath this information, Plaintiff is directed to include a case caption as described in Rule 2.111 subsections (3) to (7).

Plaintiff’s motion at issue today failed to include these requirements and was rejected by the clerk. Therefore, the Court cannot rule on Plaintiff’s request and any such request must be denied, without prejudice.

Plaintiff’s unopposed motion for leave to file a second amended complaint is denied, without prejudice.

Hon. Daniel M. Crowley

Judge of the Superior Court