Judge Lee S. Arian, Case Number: 22STCV33121, Date: 2024-05-28 Tentative Ruling

Judge: Lee S. Arian, Case: 22STCV33121, Date: 2024-05-28 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: 22STCV33121 Hearing Date: May 28, 2024 Dept: 27

Hon. Lee S. Arian, Dept 27

MOTION TO COMPEL PLAINTIFF’S DEPOSITION AND REQUESTS FOR SANCTIONS

Hearing Date: 5/28/24¿

CASE NO./NAME: 22STCV33121 LAUREN BERINA vs SHARI COHEN

Moving Party: Defendant Shari Cohen

Responding Party: Plaintiff¿

Notice: Sufficient¿

Ruling: MOTION TO COMPEL PLAINTIFF’S DEPOSITION AND REQUESTS FOR SANCTIONS ARE GRANTED

Legal Standard

Any party may obtain any discovery of information, documents, land, property, or electronically stored information so long as the discoverable matter is not privileged, is relevant to the subject matter and can lead one to admissible evidence.¿(Code Civ. Proc. § 2017.010.)

Code Civ. Proc., § 2025.450¿provides in pertinent part the following:

“(a) If, after service of a deposition notice, a party to the action or an officer, director, managing agent, or employee of a party, or a person designated by an organization that is a party under Section 2025.230, without having served a valid objection under Section 2025.410, fails to appear for examination, or to proceed with it, or to produce for inspection any document, electronically stored information, or tangible thing described in the deposition notice, the party giving the notice may move for an order compelling the deponent's attendance and testimony, and the production for inspection of any document, electronically stored information, or tangible thing described in the deposition notice.

(b) A motion under subdivision (a) shall comply with both of the following:

(1) The motion shall set forth specific facts showing good cause justifying the production for inspection of any document, electronically stored information, or tangible thing described in the deposition notice.

(2) The motion shall be accompanied by a meet and confer declaration under Section 2016.040¿or, when the deponent fails to attend the deposition and produce the documents, electronically stored information, or things described in the deposition notice, by a declaration stating that the petitioner has contacted the deponent to inquire about the nonappearance.

Discussion

On October 10, 2022, Plaintiff filed a complaint alleging personal injuries and damages from an automobile accident that occurred on October 15, 2020. Defendant has been attempting to obtain Plaintiff’s deposition since May 2, 2023. Each time, Plaintiff’s counsel filed an objection stating that the depositions were unilaterally set. Despite Defendant’s repeated efforts to meet and confer on a mutually agreeable date for the deposition, Plaintiff either did not respond to the meet and confer requests, failed to provide any mutually available dates, or canceled the deposition at the last minute.

Defendant’s fourth deposition notice was served on March 6, 2024, for a deposition on March 26, 2024. An objection was served on March 20, 2024, citing that the notice was set unilaterally. Defendant acquired a certificate of nonappearance when Plaintiff did not appear on March 26, 2024. Defendant now moves the Court to compel Plaintiff’s deposition. No opposition has been filed.

Since May 2, 2023, Defendant has actively sought to depose Plaintiff, issuing four deposition notices. Despite extensive efforts, including repeated attempts to meet and confer to agree on a suitable date for the deposition, these attempts have been unsuccessful. Plaintiff's objections that the deposition was unilaterally set are no longer valid, given Defendant's extensive meet and confer efforts over more than a year to establish a mutually available date.

Defendant has satisfied all necessary requirements to compel Plaintiff’s deposition under Code of Civil Procedure section 2025.450(a). Defendant has fulfilled her meet and confer requirement obligations, properly noticed Plaintiff's deposition, and Plaintiff has failed to serve valid objections nor appeared for her deposition. Thus, the present motion is GRANTED and Plaintiff is required to attend her deposition within 20 days from today.

Sanctions

Plaintiff's failure to attend his deposition forced Defendant to incur attorney's fees by filing the present motion. Defendant requests attorneys' fees in the amount of $940, and the Court finds this amount reasonable. Plaintiff and her counsel are ORDERED, jointly and severally, to pay sanctions of $940 to Defendant within 20 days of today’s 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.