Judge: Lee W. Tsao, Case: 22NWCV01285, Date: 2024-03-13 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: 22NWCV01285    Hearing Date: March 13, 2024    Dept: C

MARTINEZ v. FCA US LLC

CASE NO.:  22NWCV01285

HEARING: 3/13/24 @ 10:30 AM

#7

TENTATIVE RULING

I.             Plaintiff Martinez’s motion to compel Defendant’s further responses to special interrogatories is DENIED. No sanctions.

II.            Plaintiff Martinez’s motion to compel further responses to request for production of documents is DENIED.  No sanctions.

Opposing Party to give NOTICE.

Plaintiff Martinez moves to compel further responses to special interrogatories and document requests pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure §§ 2030.300 and 2031.310.   

Code of Civil Procedure sections 2030.300 and 2031.310 allow a party to file a motion compelling further answers to interrogatories and document requests if it finds that the response is inadequate, incomplete, or evasive, or an objection in the response is without merit or too general.  The motion shall be accompanied by a meet and confer declaration.  (Code Civ. Proc., §§ 2030.300, subd. (b) and 2031.310, subd. (b).) 

The court finds Plaintiff adequately met and conferred.

Timeliness

Notice of the motion to compel further must be provided within 45 days of service of the response, or any supplemental response, or on or before any specific later date to which the parties have agreed.  (Code Civ. Pro., § 2030.300, subd. (c), 2031.310, subd. (c).) This 45-day deadline runs from the date the verified response is served and is extended for service by mail in accordance with Code of Civil Procedure Sections 1010.6(a)(4) and 1013(a). Failure to timely move to compel within the specified period constitutes a waiver of any right to compel a further response. (Code Civ. Pro., § 2030.300, subd. (c), 2031.310, subd. (c).)

The 45–day rule to bring a motion to compel is mandatory and jurisdictional “in the sense that it renders court without authority to rule on motions to compel other than to deny them.” (Sexton v. Super. Ct. (1997) 58 Cal.App.4th 1403, 1410.)

On June 6, 2023, the defendant served unverified responses to Plaintiff’s first set of special interrogatories and first set of requests for production of documents. (Decl. Lopez, ¶ 4.) On June 9, 2023, the defendant served verifications for both responses. (Decl. Lopez, ¶ 4.) The 45-day deadline to file a motion to compel further responses to special interrogatories, set one and requests for production of documents, set one is July 26, 2023, extended by two court days for electronic service. On August 7, 2023, the parties agreed to extend the motion to compel further deadline to August 24, 2023. (Decl. Lopez, ¶ 4, Ex. D.)

Plaintiff filed both motions on September 15, 2023, which is past the agreed deadline of August 24, 2023.Thus, the motions are untimely.

The motions are denied. The requests for sanctions are denied.