Judge: John J. Kralik, Case: 23BBCV01462, Date: 2024-03-29 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: 23BBCV01462    Hearing Date: March 29, 2024    Dept: NCB

Superior Court of California

County of Los Angeles

North Central District

Department B

On February 8, 2024, Plaintiff Event Horizon Technologies, Inc. (“Plaintiff”) filed 2 motions to compel initial responses from Defendant Buds & Roses Collective, Inc. (“Defendant”) for: (1) Form Interrogatories (“FROG”), set one; and (2) Special Interrogatories (“SROG”), set one.  

On November 14, 2023, Plaintiff served on Defendant the discovery requests.  Plaintiff’s counsel sent a letter to Defendant on January 22, 2024, requesting a response.  As of the filing of the motions, Plaintiff states that it has not received responses from Defendant. 

On March 25, 2024, Defendant filed an untimely opposition brief, which includes the declaration of counsel Mac E. Nehoray.  (Based on the March 29, 2024 hearing date, the opposition was due by March 18, 2024.)   Counsel states that he has forwarded all the discovery requests to Defendant, but he has not received any response from Defendant and none of his calls have been returned by Defendant.  (Nehoray Decl., ¶2.)  Counsel states that he personally knows Defendant and that Defendant is going through a hard personal problem, such that the delay in discovery is not due to the abuse of the discovery process.  (Id., ¶4.)  Counsel requests that if sanctions are imposed, that sanctions be imposed against Defendant only and not against counsel, as counsel has been cooperative with Plaintiff’s counsel and has been communicating with Plaintiff about reaching a settlement.  (Id., ¶5.) 

Plaintiff’s motions to compel responses to the FROG and SROG are granted pursuant to CCP § 2030.290.  Defendant is ordered to provide verified responses to Plaintiff’s discovery requests, without objections, within 20 days of notice of this order. 

Plaintiff requests sanctions against Defendant in the amount of $460 per motion.  The requests are granted in the reasonable amount of $620 (= $500 for a reasonable amount of attorney’s fees on these two relatively simple motions and $120 in filing fees).  Defendant is ordered to pay monetary sanctions in the amount of $620 to Plaintiff, by and through counsel, within 20 days of notice of this order.