Plaintiff Creditors Adjustment Bureau, Inc.’s Request for Entry of Default Judgment

Defendant: T.N Lucky Inc Dba TN Logisticus

TENTATIVE RULING

DENY without prejudice.

BACKGROUND

This is a collection case. Plaintiff Creditors Adjustment Bureau, Inc. (Plaintiff) is the assignee of creditor State Compensation Insurance Fund. On March 17, 2023, Plaintiff filed this action against Defendant T.N Lucky Inc Dba TN Logisticus (Defendant), alleging causes of action for breach of contract, account stated, open book account, and reasonable value. Default was entered against Defendant on September 1, 2023. 

LEGAL STANDARD

Code of Civil Procedure section 585 permits entry of a default judgment after a party has failed to timely respond or appear. (Code Civ. Proc., § 585.) A party seeking judgment on the default by the court must file a Request for Court Judgment, and: (1) a brief summary of the case; (2) declarations or other admissible evidence in support of the judgment requested; (3) interest computations as necessary; (4) a memorandum of costs and disbursements; (5) a proposed form of judgment; (6) a dismissal of all parties against whom judgment is not sought or an application for separate judgment under Code of Civil Procedure section 579, supported by a showing of grounds for each judgment; (7) exhibits as necessary; and (8) a request for attorneys’ fees if allowed by statute or by the agreement of the parties. (Cal. Rules of Court, rule 3.1800.) 

ANALYSIS

Plaintiff seeks default judgment against Defendant in the total amount of $32,022.82, including $26,433.36 in damages, $3,378.11 in interest, $1,200.00 in attorney fees, and $1,011.35 in costs. The Court finds, however, that Plaintiff’s request for entry of default judgment failed to use the proper form for requesting entry of default judgment. While Form CIV-100 is generally the form required for most default judgments, Plaintiff is the assignee of the creditor, which renders this action subject to the Fair Debt Buying Practices Act and requires the use of Form CIV-105 instead. (Cal. Rules of Court, rule 3.1800, subd. (a), italics in original [“A party seeking a default judgment on declarations must use mandatory Request for Entry of Default (Application to Enter Default) (form CIV-100), unless the action is subject to the Fair Debt Buying Practices Act, Civil Code section 1788.50 et seq., in which case the party must use mandatory Request for Entry of Default (Fair Debt Buying Practices Act) (form CIV-105).”])

CONCLUSION

Based on the foregoing, the Court DENIES the request for entry of default judgment without prejudice.