Judge: Elaine W. Mandel, Case: 23SMCV03039, Date: 2024-06-06 Tentative Ruling
Case Number: 23SMCV03039 Hearing Date: June 6, 2024 Dept: P
Tentative
Ruling
Williams,
et al. v. BMW of North America, et al., Case No. 23SMCV03039
Hearing
date June 6, 2024
Plaintiffs
Williams’ Motion to Compel Further Responses to Special Interrogatories, Set
One and Responses to Requests for Production of Documents, Set One.
Plaintiffs allege
various violations of the Song-Beverly Act. On October 3, 2023, plaintiff
electronically served initial discovery responses on BMW, including Special Interrogatories, Set One, and Requests for
Production of Documents, Set One. Cohen Decl. ¶ 6, Exhs. A-B. On November
8, 2023, BMW served its responses two days beyond the deadline. (Id. at
¶ 8, Exhs. C-D.)
The parties agreed
to appear at an Informal Discovery Conference on April 25, 2024, but BMW failed
to appear. Id. at ¶¶12-13. The Court reserved a hearing date for this
motions on June 6, 2024. Thereafter, BMW stipulated to extend Williams’
deadline to file the instant motions to May 17, 2024. Id. at ¶ 14, Exh.
J.
Ultimately,
on May 13, 2024, Williams filed and served the instant motions to compel
further responses to her Special Interrogatories, Set One, and Requests for
Production of Documents, Set One.
In
opposition, BMW’s counsel asserts she was never served with the moving papers,
despite what is claimed in the proofs of service. Dao Decl. ¶ 4-5. BMW requests
the Court to reschedule the hearing on the instant motions.
Williams
argues BMW was properly served and reasons that BMW’s counsel’s credibility is
questionable based on BMW’s failure to provide supplemental responses and not
appearing at the informal discovery conference.
The court
accepts counsel’s assertion of never being served with the moving papers.
Furthe, BMW would be prejudiced if it were not given an opportunity to respond
to the arguments presented in the moving papers.
Accordingly,
the motions will be continued, with opposition and reply to be filed and served
per code.