Judge: Lee S. Arian, Case: 22STCV21888, Date: 2024-08-12 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: 22STCV21888    Hearing Date: August 12, 2024    Dept: 27

Hon. Lee S. Arian, Dept 27 

MOTION TO COMPEL INITIAL RESPONSES AND REQUESTS FOR SANCTIONS

Hearing Date: 8/12/24¿ 

CASE NO./NAME: 22STCV21888 DANIEL ORTIZ vs RENO KESHISHIAN, AN INDIVIDUAL, et al.

Moving Party: Plaintiff

Responding Party: Defendants Herbal Solutions and SS Cal-Pacific

Notice: Sufficient¿ 

Ruling: MOTION TO COMPEL INITIAL RESPONSES AND REQUESTS FOR SANCTIONS ARE GRANTED

On October 2, 2023, Plaintiff served Defendant HERBAL SOLUTIONS dba URBAN TREEZ with his Form Interrogatories, Set One, and Special Interrogatories, Set One. On the same day, Plaintiff also served Defendant SS CAL-PACIFIC, INC. with his Form Interrogatories, Set One. On October 12, 2023, Plaintiff served HERBAL SOLUTIONS with his Request for Production, Set One. Despite numerous attempts by Plaintiff to meet and confer, no responses have been provided. Plaintiff now moves the Court to compel Defendants to provide initial responses.

Defendants did not file an opposition or any other filing indicating that responses were provided prior to the present motion. Thus, the motions are granted. Defendant HERBAL SOLUTIONS is ordered to provide complete and verified responses to Plaintiff’s Special Interrogatories, Set One, Form Interrogatories, Set One, and Request for Production, Set One, without objections, within 20 days of today. Defendant SS CAL-PACIFIC, INC. is ordered to provide complete and verified responses to Plaintiff’s Interrogatories, Set One, without objections, within 20 days of today.

Plaintiff requests sanctions in the amount of $829.15 per motion. Sanctions are mandatory and the Court finds Defendants have not acted with substantial justification. However, due to the simplicity of the issues, the Court reduces the amount of sanctions to the following: $1,000 against Defendant HERBAL SOLUTIONS and its attorney, jointly and severally, payable to Plaintiff within 20 days of today; $500 against Defendant SS CAL-PACIFIC, INC. and its attorney, jointly and severally, payable to Plaintiff within 20 days of today.

PLEASE TAKE NOTICE:

If a party intends to submit on this tentative ruling, the party must send an email to the court at sscdept27@lacourt.org with the Subject line “SUBMIT” followed by the case number. The body of the email must include the hearing date and time, counsel’s contact information, and the identity of the party submitting.

Unless all parties submit by email to this tentative ruling, the parties should arrange to appear remotely (encouraged) or in person for oral argument.  You should assume that others may appear at the hearing to argue.

If the parties neither submit nor appear at hearing, the Court may take the motion off calendar or adopt the tentative ruling as the order of the Court. After the Court has issued a tentative ruling, the Court may prohibit the withdrawal of the subject motion without leave.