TENTATIVE RULING

Plaintiff National Lending Services LLC’s Motion to Compel Omar Nukta’s Attendance at Deposition is DENIED without prejudice.

Plaintiff National Lending Services LLC to give notice. 

REASONING

Plaintiff National Lending Services LLC (“Plaintiff”) moves the Court for an order compelling Defendant Omar Nukta (“Defendant”) to appear for his deposition in accordance with the deposition notices served on Defendant. Plaintiff represents that it served two notices, the first on June 24, 2024 for a deposition to occur on August 20, 2024, the second on September 3, 2024 for a deposition to occur on September 24, 2024, and Defendant failed to appear for either deposition. (Mot., Distefano Decl. ¶¶ 2-4.)

“If, after service of a deposition notice, a party to the action . . . , 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.” (Code Civ. Proc., § 2025.450, subd. (a).)

While Plaintiff is entitled to take Defendant’s deposition, and Plaintiff presents evidence that Defendant failed to appear for examination without having served any objection to the notices of deposition, Plaintiff’s motion is not accompanied by a proper declaration and must be denied without prejudice.

Code of Civil Procedure section 2025.450, subdivision (b)(2), states that a motion to compel a party’s deposition “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.” Plaintiff’s motion is one to compel deposition testimony due to Defendant’s nonappearance, such that it should have been accompanied by a declaration describing meet-and-confer efforts or stating that Plaintiff’s counsel contacted Defendant to inquire about the nonappearance. 

Because the instant motion is not accompanied by the required declaration, Plaintiff National Lending Services LLC’s Motion to Compel Omar Nukta’s Attendance at Deposition is DENIED without prejudice.