Judge: Mark A. Young, Case: 23SMCV02880, Date: 2024-11-14 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: 23SMCV02880    Hearing Date: November 14, 2024    Dept: M

CASE NAME:           Fuller, et al., v. General Motors LLC, et al.

CASE NO.:                23SMCV02880

MOTION:                  Motion to Compel Deposition

HEARING DATE:   11/14/2024

Legal Standard

Service of a proper deposition notice obligates a party or “party-affiliated” witness (officer, director, managing agent or employee of party) to attend and testify, as well as produce any document, electronically stored information, or tangible thing for inspection and copying. (CCP § 2025.280(a).) If, after service of a deposition notice, a party deponent fails to appear, testify, or produce documents or tangible things for inspection without having served a valid objection under CCP § 2025.410, the deposing party may move for an order compelling attendance, testimony, and production. (CCP § 2025.450(a).) The motion must be accompanied by a meet and confer declaration, or, when a party deponent fails to attend the deposition, the motion must also be accompanied by a declaration stating that the moving party has contacted the party deponent to inquire about the nonappearance. (CCP § 2025.450(b)(2).) If the deposition notice included a request for production of documents, the motion to compel attendance must also show good cause to justify the production. (CCP § 2025.450(b)(1).) 

A motion to compel production of documents described in a deposition notice must be accompanied by a showing of good cause. (CCP § 2025.450(b)(1).) In other words, the moving party must provide declarations containing specific facts justifying inspection of the documents described in the notice. Courts liberally construe good cause in favor of discovery where facts show the documents are necessary for trial preparation. 

The motion to compel must be “made no later than 60 days after the completion of the record of the deposition.” (CCP § 2025.480(b).)

Analysis

Plaintiffs Darren E. Fuller and Gianni M. Black move to compel Defendant General Motors LLC’s person most knowledgeable (PMK) deposition pertaining to Examination 1-3, 6-24, 26-28, 30, and 33, and responses and production of documents pursuant to Plaintiffs’ associated Request for Production of Documents, numbers 1-17.

            Plaintiffs’ claims arise from their purchase of a 2021 Cadillac Escalade. Plaintiffs allege that GM was unable to repair the vehicle within reasonable number of attempts, and refused to repurchase Plaintiffs’ vehicle despite its knowledge that Plaintiffs’ vehicle suffers from serious electrical system defects. (Yowarski Decl., ¶¶ 6-7, Ex. 1.)  Plaintiffs served a notice of deposition of Defendant GM’s PMK and requested production of documents on October 19, 2023, with the deposition to take place on November 7, 2023. (Id., ¶ 16., Ex. 3.) Defendant did not serve any objections regarding Plaintiffs’ Notice of PMK Deposition and did not provide a PMK witness as noticed. (Id. ¶ 17.) On November 7, 2023, Plaintiffs served an Amended Deposition Notice of GM’s PMK for November 21, 2023. (Id. ¶ 18., Ex. 4.) GM again failed to serve any objections and did not provide a PMK witness as noticed. (Id. ¶ 19.)

The motion is untimely. The deposition record was completed on November 21, 2023, the date the operative notice set for the deposition. Plaintiff waited almost a year before attempting to compel the deposition, which is beyond 60 days after the completion of the record. Any objections posed by GM in July 2024 would not revive this motion. The meet and confer efforts in July 2024 did not pertain to this action since the correspondence does not show any reference to Plaintiffs Fuller and Black, or this case number. (See Yowarski Decl., ¶¶ 20-25, Exs. 5-7.)

As such, the motion is DENIED.