Judge: Jon R. Takasugi, Case: 21STCV33479, Date: 2022-09-30 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: 21STCV33479    Hearing Date: September 30, 2022    Dept: 17

Superior Court of California

County of Los Angeles

DEPARTMENT 17

TENTATIVE RULING

            Plaintiff’s motion to enforce the settlement is MOOT.  

            On 9/10/2021, Plaintiff Christian Palencia (Plaintiff) filed suit against Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC, alleging: (1) breach of implied warranty; (2) breach of express warranty; and (3) violation of the Song Beverly Consumer Warranty Act.

            Now, Plaintiff moves to enforce the terms of their settlement agreement.

Discussion

On 3/29/2022, the parties to this litigation agreed to a written settlement agreement. The terms of the Agreement, which were drafted entirely by Defendant, required Defendant to “pay Fifteen Thousand Dollars ($15,000) to the Plaintiff and Fifteen Thousand Dollars ($15,000) for attorneys’ fees and costs via a single check for Thirty Thousand Dollars ($30,000) made payable to The Law Office of Jacob Kashani.” In addition to the monetary amount, the Agreement further promises “the settlement check will be delivered to Plaintiff’s counsel within 90 days following the receipt of the fully executed Settlement and Release Agreement by Defendant’s counsel. (Kashani Decl., ¶ 2.)

            Plaintiff argues that Defendant has failed to comply with its obligation to pay Plaintiff any of the money owed pursuant to the Agreement.

            In opposition, Defendant noted that all payments required by the Agreement have since been paid, thereby making this motion moot. Defendant also notes that although the payment was issued later than originally anticipated, Defendant informed Plaintiff of the date it would issue the settlement payment, Plaintiff proceeded to file the Motion anyway, and Defendant delivered the settlement payment when it said it would. (Reynolds Decl., ¶ 2.)

            Given that Defendant has issued all requisite payments under the Agreement, the Court declines to award sanctions at this time.

            Plaintiff’s motion to enforce the settlement is moot.

It is so ordered.

Dated:  September    , 2022

   Hon. Jon R. Takasugi
   Judge of the Superior Court

Parties who intend to submit on this tentative must send an email to the court at smcdept17@lacourt.org by 4 p.m. the day prior as directed by the instructions provided on the court website at www.lacourt.org.  If a party submits on the tentative, the party’s email must include the case number and must identify the party submitting on the tentative.  If all parties to a motion submit, the court will adopt this tentative as the final order.  If the department does not receive an email indicating the parties are submitting on the tentative and there are no appearances at the hearing, the motion may be placed off calendar. 

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