Judge Lee S. Arian, Case Number: 22STCV24451, Date: 2024-11-14 Tentative Ruling

Judge: Lee S. Arian, Case: 22STCV24451, Date: 2024-11-14 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: 22STCV24451 Hearing Date: November 14, 2024 Dept: 27

Hon. Lee S. Arian, Dept 27

MOTION TO CONTINUE

Hearing Date: 11/14/24

CASE NO./NAME: 22STCV24451 DENEEN KYKER vs REZA SOLTANIANZADEH, et al.

Moving Party: Plaintiff

Responding Party: Unopposed

Notice: Sufficient¿

Ruling: GRANTED

On July 28, 2022, Plaintiff filed the present case, with trial currently set for December 13, 2024. Plaintiff’s counsel, Thomas G. Adams, notes he has two other trials scheduled to begin on December 13, 2024—one in Riverside County Superior Court and the other in Ventura County Superior Court. Additionally, counsel has twelve trials scheduled between December 13, 2024, and April 16, 2025, and he is expecting the birth of his child between late December and early January. Plaintiff also cites various factual discovery that remains incomplete.

Given that this case was filed on July 28, 2022, discovery should be completed in this straightforward slip-and-fall case. The Court is not persuaded by Plaintiff’s reasoning as to why discovery has not been completed or cannot be completed before trial. For instance, Plaintiff references ongoing medical treatment; however, most personal injury cases involve ongoing treatment, which does not inherently preclude proceeding to trial based on incomplete factual discovery. The Court also is not persuaded by Plaintiff’s trial schedule given that counsel has failed to provide the information necessary to take these potential conflicts into account – counsel fails to indicate case nos., filing dates, trial time estimates for these cases. Further, a conclusory statement regarding how many cases a counsel has on calendar for several months is entirely unhelpful to the Court.

The Court is supposed to ensure that civil cases conclude in 2 years (see CRC 3.714). This case appears to be a relatively simple slip-and-fall matter that has been pending for over two years. However, in light of counsel’s impending child’s birth in January, the Court will grant a short continuance, as requested.

The trial date is continued to April 4, 2025, at 8:30 a.m., and the Final Status Conference is continued to March 21, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. All case-related deadlines will follow the new trial date.

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.