Judge: Jon R. Takasugi, Case: 24STCP04110, Date: 2025-04-17 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: 24STCP04110    Hearing Date: April 17, 2025    Dept: 17

Superior Court of California

County of Los Angeles

DEPARTMENT 17

TENTATIVE RULING

Petitioner’s motion to confirm the arbitration award is GRANTED.

            On 12/17/2024, the Board of Trustees of the Cement Masons Southern California Health and Welfare Fund, Board of Trustees of Southern California Pension Trust, the Board of Trustees Eleven Counties Cement Masons Vacation Savings Plan, the Board of Trustees Cement Masons Joint Apprenticeship Trust, and the Board of Trustees Cement Masons Southern California Individual Retirement Account Defined Contribution Trust (collectively, Petitioner) petitioned this Court to confirm an arbitration award entered in favor of it against Lopez Construction, Inc. (Respondent).

            The motion is unopposed.

Legal Standard

An arbitration award is not directly enforceable until it is confirmed by a court and judgment is entered. (Code Civ. Proc. § 1287.6; Jones v. Kvistad (1971) 19 Cal.App.3d 836, 840.) A party who is satisfied with an arbitration award should move to confirm the award.

A petition to confirm an arbitration award must include the substance of the agreement to arbitrate, the names of the arbitrators, and the opinion of the arbitrator. (Code Civ. Proc., § 1285.4. The general rule is that a court will not review “the merits of the controversy, the validity of the arbitrator’s reasoning, or the sufficiency of the evidence.” (Jordan v. DMV (2002) 100 Cal.App.4th 43; see also Dept. of Personnel Admin. v. Cal. Correctional Peace Officers Ass'n (2007) 152 Cal.App.4th 1193, 1200 [“an arbitrator’s decision is not generally reviewable for errors of fact or law, whether or not such error appears on the face of the award and causes substantial injustice to the parties.”].) Confirmation of the award is mandatory unless a response or petition to correct or vacate the award has been timely filed. (See Code Civ. Proc. § 1286; Valsan Partners Limited Partnership v. Calcor Space Facility, Inc. (1994) 25 Cal.App.4th 809, 818)

Discussion

            Here, Petitioner’s submitted petition includes the name of the arbitrator, a copy of the award, and the written opinion of the arbitrator. (CCP § 1285.4.)

            Confirmation of the award is mandatory unless a response or petition to correct or vacate the award has been timely filed. (See Code Civ. Proc., §§ 1286.4, 1286.8; Valsan Partners Limited Partnership v. Calcor Space Facility, Inc. (1994) 25 Cal.App.4th 809, 818) 

            Based on the foregoing, Petitioner’s motion to confirm the arbitration award is granted.

It is so ordered.

Dated:  April    , 2025

   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.  For more information, please contact the court clerk at (213) 633-0517.