Judge: Kristin S. Escalante , Case: 21STCV17546, Date: 2023-03-30 Tentative Ruling
Case Number: 21STCV17546 Hearing Date: March 30, 2023 Dept: 24
MOVING PARTY: Shahrooz Taheri (Plaintiff)
RESP. PARTY: Kreation Juicery, Inc.; Self
Love, LLC
NATURE OF PROCEEDINGS: Hearing on Motion to Compel
Further Discovery Responses from Defendant Kreation Juicery, Inc. to provide
further responses and produce all documents to requests no. 1-12, 15-30, 33-34,
39-48, 51, 54, 58-60, 66-67 in Plaintiffs first set of Request for Production;
Hearing on Motion to Compel Further Discovery Responses from Defendant Self Love,
LLC to provide further responses to No. 211.1 and 216.1 from Plaintiffs first
set of Employment-Form Interrogatories; Hearing on Motion to Compel Further
Discovery Responses from Defendant Self Love, LLC to Plaintiffs second set of
Special Interrogatories No. 21,24,30,31,33, and 35 through 168
The above-captioned matters are called for hearing.
The Court has read the moving papers in the above-captioned
motions and announces its tentative rulings in open Court.
The Motion to Compel Further
Discovery Responses from Defendant Self Love, LLC to Employment - Form
Interrogatories (set one) 211.1 and 216.1 and Request for Monetary Sanctions
reservation no.: 900709780865 filed by Plaintiff Shahrooz Taheri on 3/03/2023;
the Motion to Compel Further Discovery Responses from Kreation Juicery, Inc. to
Plaintiff's Request for Production of Documents (set one) and Request for
Monetary Sanctions reservation no.: 160088416811 filed by Plaintiff Shahrooz
Taheri on 3/036/2023; and the Motion to Compel Further Discovery Responses from
Defendant Self Love, LLC to Employment Form Interrogatory (set one)
21,24,30,31,33, and 35 through 168 and Request for Monetary Sanctions
reservation no.: 868772852761 filed by Plaintiff Shahrooz Taheri on 3/06/2023
are DENIED without prejudice.
In each motion, Plaintiff did
not attach any supporting evidence to the declaration of Plaintiff’s counsel,
Armand Jaafari.
Plaintiff Shahrooz Taheri
(“Plaintiff”) moves for an order compelling (i) Defendant Self Love, LLC (“Self
Love”) to provide further responses to special interrogatories (“SROG”) Nos.
21, 24, 30, 31, 33, and 35 through 168, (ii) Self Love to provide further response
to employment form interrogatories set one (“EROG”) Nos. 211.1 and 216.1, and
(iii) Defendant Kreation Juicery Inc. (“Kreation”) to provide further response
and produce all documents responsive to requests for production (“RFP”) Nos.
1-12, 15-30, 33-34, 39-48, 51, 54, 58-60, 66-67.
Plaintiff also request
sanctions but does not specify amount sought in the notice or the motions—the
motions each state “XXXX” amount. Additionally, Plaintiff names defendants in
the motion, but does not identify counsel by name or firm in the notice of
motion. (Code Civ. Proc., § 2023.040)
DISCUSSION
1. Self Love – Responses to
SROGs, Set One
Plaintiff moves for an order
compelling Self Love to provide further responses to SROG Nos. 21, 24, 30, 31,
33, and 35 through 168. Plaintiff states in the moving papers that on June 2,
2021, he served Self Love with SROGs set one. After extensive meet and confer
between the parties Self Love supplied Plaintiff with largely objection only
responses. Plaintiff seeks further responses.
A party may move for an order compelling further response if
“[a]n answer to a particular interrogatory is evasive or incomplete[, or] [a]n
objection to an interrogatory is without merit or too general.” (Code Civ.
Proc., §2030.300.)
As a preliminary matter, the court cannot ascertain if the
motion is timely under the code section. Plaintiff failed to provide evidence
supporting when Self Love provided responses or confirming the motion to compel
deadline was extended by agreement of the parties until the present. (Code Civ.
Proc., § 2030.300, subd. (c).) Plaintiff’s
counsel, Armand Jaafari (“Jaafari”), submits his declaration in support of the
motion. Jaafari does not state when the SROGs were served. Through some
inadvertence, Jaafari refers to numerous attached exhibits, but he attaches no
exhibits to his declaration, the motion, or the separate statement.
“Unless notice of this motion is given within 45 days of the
service of the verified response, or any supplemental verified response, or on
or before any specific later date to which the propounding party and the
responding party have agreed in writing, the propounding party waives any right
to compel a further response to the interrogatories.” (Code Civ. Proc., §
2030.300, subd. (c).) The court strictly enforces this time requirement. (See
Vidal Sassoon, Inc. v. Superior Court (1983) 147 Cal.App.3d 681, 683 [the time
limitation “is mandatory and the court may not entertain a belated motion to
compel”].)
Due to the lack of attached exhibits, the court cannot
review the actual requests or responses beyond what is within Plaintiff’s
separate statement. The court also cannot review the scope of the parties’ meet
and confer efforts regarding the disputed discovery.
Accordingly, the motion is denied without prejudice.
Plaintiff may refile the motion with attached exhibits in support.
2. Self Love – Responses to
EROGs Set One
Plaintiff moves for an order
compelling Self Love to provide further response to employment form
interrogatories set one (“EROG”) Nos. 211.1 and 216. The motion fails for the
same reasons discussed above—there are no exhibits in support of the motion.
Additionally, Plaintiff does not attach a separate statement regarding EROGs
Nos. 211.1 and 216 as required. (Rules of Court, Rule 3.1345.) Instead,
Plaintiff incorrectly attaches a separate statement regarding Form
Interrogatories (“FROG”) Nos. 12.1-12.3.
Accordingly, the motion is
denied without prejudice.
3. Kreatine – Responses to RFPs
Set One
Plaintiff moves for an order
compelling Kreation to provide further response and produce all documents
responsive RFP Nos. 1-12, 15-30, 33-34, 39-48, 51, 54, 58-60, 66-67. The motion
fails for the same reasons discussed above—there are no exhibits in support of
the motion.
Accordingly, the motion is
denied without prejudice.
Moving party is directed to
give notice.