Judge: Kevin C. Brazile, Case: 22STCV13703, Date: 2024-02-02 Tentative Ruling

Hearing Date: February 2, 2024

Case Name: Lizarraga v. Total Airport Services, Inc., et al.

Case No.: 21STCV35025

Matter: Motion to Compel

Moving Party: Defendant Total Airport Services, LLC

Responding Party: Plaintiff Maria Lizarraga

Notice: OK

Ruling: The Motion is granted in part.

Moving party to give notice.

If counsel do not submit on the tentative, they are strongly 

encouraged to appear by LACourtConnect rather than in person due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

This is an employment action.  

Defendant Total Airport Services, LLC seeks “(1) issuance of contempt and an order issuing terminating sanctions against Plaintiff Maria Lizarraga (‘Plaintiff’) pursuant to California Code of Civil Procedure sections 2023.010(d) and 2023.030, or, alternatively, (2) an order pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure sections 2025.450, compelling Plaintiff to appear for her deposition and provide testimony on February 9, 2024 pursuant to Defendant’s Amended Notice of Deposition, or two weeks after any Order(s) issued by the Court compelling Plaintiff to provide further substantive discovery responses and produce documents on Defendant’s pending Motions for Contempt and Sanctions scheduled for hearing on January 18, 2024, (3) an order directing Plaintiff to pay monetary sanctions in the amount of $3,860.00 pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure sections 2023.030 and 2025.450, and (4) an order continuing the trial date and pre-trial deadlines.”

Plaintiff seems willing to have a deposition and so the Court believes terminating sanctions are premature and punitive.  

The primary issue seems to be a scheduling problem.  Plaintiff fails to make clear when she would actually make herself available for a deposition.

The Court orders that the deposition take place on March 11, 2024, which gives Defendant time to review other discovery before a deposition.  

There is also a disagreement as to whether the deposition should be in-person or remote.  The Court orders that the deposition be done in person as requested by the amended notice of deposition.

The Court awards reduced monetary sanctions in the amount of $1,000 because this Motion essentially arose from months of silence from Plaintiff’s counsel on the issue of a deposition date.  

Defendant also requests a trial continuance, which Plaintiff does not apparently oppose.  The trial date of June 24, 2024, is continued to March 24, 2025.  All associated deadlines are tethered to the new trial date.  

The Motion is granted in part as set forth herein.

Moving party to give notice.

If counsel do not submit on the tentative, they are strongly encouraged to appear by LACourtConnect rather than in person due to the COVID-19 pandemic.