Judge Kerry Bensinger, Case Number: 23STCV27484, Date: 2024-10-09 Tentative Ruling

MOVING PARTY: Plaintiff Jennifer Field, Trustee of Jennifer Field Irrevocable Trust

On November 7, 2023, Plaintiff Jennifer Field, as Trustee of the Jennifer Field Irrevocable Trust, initiated this action against Defendant Michael Field for the breach of a final trust agreement concerning the use, ownership, and management of the real property at 860 Yale Street, Santa Monica, CA 90403 (the Property). Plaintiff also seeks partition of the Property.

On February 8, 2024, the parties executed a Settlement Agreement. Under the terms of the Settlement Agreement, Defendant was required to:

1. Execute a grant deed transferring his entire interest in the Property to: (a) Defendant as a fifty percent (50%) tenant in common; and (b) Plaintiff as a fifty percent (50%) tenant in common;

2. Pay seventy-five percent (75%) of the mortgage payments on the mortgage secured by the Property, bearing loan #0381278407 (the “Current Mortgage”) when Plaintiff is not occupying the Property for thirty (30) or more days;

3. Pay one hundred percent (100%) of all other property expenses, including insurance, utilities, property taxes, and home equity loans (the “Other Property Expenses”) when Plaintiff is not occupying the Property for thirty (30) or more days. Plaintiff is not responsible for any loan Defendant causes to be secured against the Property, other than the Current Mortgage, whether or not Plaintiff occupies the Property;

4. Cooperate immediately and in good faith with any sale of the Property by Plaintiff. Plaintiff has the right to force the sale of the Property for any reason and choose, in her sole discretion, the listing realtor, listing price, and the final sale price; and

5. Maintain and repair the Property. If Defendant fails to maintain the Property, Plaintiff can make the necessary repairs and is entitled to reimbursement from Defendant.

The Settlement Agreement further provided that, if the Property is sold, Defendant is to reimburse Plaintiff from his portion of the sale proceeds for: (a) all of Plaintiff’s attorney fees relating to or arising out of the Property that were incurred from July 1, 2022, through the completion of the sale of the Property, including any post-sale matters that reasonably require legal counsel; and (b) any payment in excess of Plaintiff’s share of the Current Mortgage or Other Property Expenses. If Defendant’s portion of the sales proceeds do not cover the amounts owed (or if the Property is not sold), Defendant is to reimburse Plaintiff for the remaining amounts separately from the Property’s sale proceeds.

Moreover, under the Settlement Agreement, Plaintiff is also entitled to an order for the sale of the Property and may elect to receive the order from either an arbitrator or the court if any of the following circumstances occur:

1. Defendant fails to pay his share of the Current Mortgage or Other Property Expenses as required by the Settlement Agreement within thirty (30) days of the written notice to cure the breach;

2. Defendant fails to timely pay his share of the (a) Current Mortgage, (b) property tax bill, and (c) home equity loan as required by the Settlement Agreement, regardless of whether Defendant receives a notice to cure; or

3. Defendant fails to provide Plaintiff with Defendant’s credit report or a full accounting of any encumbrances, mortgages, or debts taken out against the Property within ten (10) business days of Plaintiff’s written demand.

On August 16, 2024, Plaintiff filed this Motion for Entry of Judgment under CCP § 664.6. Plaintiff also seeks attorney’s fees.

On September 30, 2024, Plaintiff filed a Notice of Defendant’s Non-Opposition to Motion for Entry of Judgment.

“If parties to pending litigation stipulate, in a writing signed by the parties outside the presence of the court or orally before the court, for settlement of the case, or part thereof, the court, upon motion, may enter judgment pursuant to the terms of the settlement.¿ If requested by the parties, the court may retain jurisdiction over the parties to enforce the settlement until performance in full of the terms of the settlement.”¿ (Code Civ. Proc., § 664.6.)¿¿¿¿

In hearing a section 664.6 motion, the trial court may receive evidence, determine disputed facts, and enter terms of a settlement agreement as a judgment.¿ (Bowers v. Raymond J. Lucia Companies, Inc. (2012) 206 Cal.App.4th 724, 732.)¿ The court may interpret the terms and conditions to settlement (Fiore v. Alvord (1985) 182 Cal.App.3d 561, 566), but the court may not create material terms of a settlement, as opposed to deciding what terms the parties themselves have previously agreed upon (Weddington Productions, Inc. v. Flick (1998) 60 Cal.App.4th 793, 810).¿ The party seeking to enforce a settlement “must first establish the agreement at issue was set forth ‘in a writing signed by the parties’ (§ 664.6) or was made orally before the court. [Citation.]”¿ (Harris v. Rudin, Richman & Appel (1999) 74 Cal.App.4th 299, 304 [holding that a letter confirming the essential terms of a settlement agreement was not a “writing signed by the parties” sufficient to satisfy the requirements of Section 664.6].)¿

Plaintiff argues Defendant has breached his obligations under the Settlement Agreement. Specifically, as Plaintiff explains, Defendant failed to:

1. Cooperate with the sale of the Property after Plaintiff exercised her right to force the sale pursuant to the Settlement Agreement;

(Field Decl., ¶¶ 6-10; see Exs. A, C-F.) Defendant, having not filed opposition, does not present any evidence or argument to the contrary.

¿ Given the foregoing breaches, Plaintiff now seeks an order entering judgment against Defendant under the Settlement Agreement as follows:

2. Plaintiff shall choose the listing realtor, the listing price, and the final sale price for the Property.

c. Allow Plaintiff access to the Property for showings, inspections, and any other activities required for the sale of the Property; and

d. Vacate the Property during showings, inspections, and any other activities required for selling the Property.

4. Defendant shall pay seventy-five percent (75%) of the mortgage payments on the mortgage secured by the Property, bearing loan #0381278407 (the “Current Mortgage”) and one hundred percent (100%) of all other property expenses (the “Other Property Expenses”), while Plaintiff is not occupying the Property for thirty (30) or more days. Plaintiff shall not be responsible for any loan Defendant causes to be secured against the Property, other than the Current Mortgage, whether or not Plaintiff occupies the Property.

5. Plaintiff shall be reimbursed from Defendant’s share of the sale proceeds for: (a) any payment in excess of Plaintiff’s share of the Current Mortgage and Other Property Expenses; and (b) all attorney fees relating to or arising out of the Property incurred from July 1, 2022, through the completion of the sale of the Property, including any post-sale matters that reasonably require legal counsel for Plaintiff. Should Defendant’s portion of the sales proceeds not cover the amounts owed (or if the Property is not sold), Defendant shall reimburse Plaintiff for the remaining amounts.

6. The Court shall retain jurisdiction under California Code of Civil Procedure, Section 664.6 to enforce the Settlement Agreement until performance in full of the terms of the settlement.

Accordingly, Plaintiff’s unopposed Motion for Entry of Judgment is GRANTED.¿ Judgment is entered for Plaintiff and against Defendant as set forth in Plaintiff’s concurrently filed proposed order.¿

The court sets a status conference re: sale of property, distribution of funds, and entry of judgment for June 4, 2025, at 9 am. Plaintiff is to file a status report at least five court days prior to the June hearing.

Kerry Bensinger

Judge of the Superior Court