Judge Mark E. Windham, Case Number: 17STLC04309, Date: 2023-05-11 Tentative Ruling

If you desire to submit on the tentative ruling, you may do so by e-mailing Dept. 26 at the Spring Street Courthouse until the morning of the motion hearing.

The e-mail address is SSCdept26@lacourt.org

The heading on your e-mail should contain the case name, number, hearing date, and that you submit. The message should indicate your name, contact information, and the party you represent. Please note, the above e-mail address is to inform the court of your submission on the tentative ruling. All other inquiries will not receive a response.

If there are no appearances by either side and no submission on the Court's tentative ruling, the matter will be placed OFF CALENDAR.

Due to overcrowding concerns of COVID-19, all parties shall make every effort to schedule a remote appearance via LACourtConnect (https://my.lacourt.org/laccwelcome) for their next hearing. The parties shall register with LACourtConnect at least 2 hours prior to their scheduled hearing time.

Plaintiff State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company’s Motion to Vacate Dismissal, Enforce Settlement Agreement and Enter Judgment is GRANTED IN THE AMOUNT OF $400.00 PRINCIPAL AND $60.00 IN COSTS.

Plaintiff State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company (“Plaintiff”) filed the instant action for automobile subrogation against Defendant Hermela Belachew Bekele (“Defendant”) on October 6, 2017. Defendant filed an answer on December 15, 2017. On September 26, 2019, Plaintiff filed a copy of its settlement agreement with Defendant with a request for dismissal and retention of jurisdiction under Code of Civil Procedure section 664.4. The Court granted the request for dismissal with retention of jurisdiction on the same date. (Order for Dismissal, 09/26/19.)

Plaintiff filed the instant motion to vacate dismissal, enforce settlement and enter judgment on April 10, 2023. No opposition has been filed to date.

The instant motion is brought under Code of Civil Procedure, section 664.6, which states in relevant part:

If parties to pending litigation stipulate, in a writing signed by the parties outside the presence of the court or orally before the court, for settlement of the case, or part thereof, the court, upon motion, may enter judgment pursuant to the terms of the settlement. If requested by the parties, the court may retain jurisdiction over the parties to enforce the settlement until performance in full of the terms of the settlement.

(Code Civ. Proc., § 664.6, subd. (a).) Prior to January 1, 2021, “parties” under section 664.6 meant the litigants themselves, not their attorneys. (Levy v. Superior Court (1995) 10 Cal.4th 578, 586.) The current statute provides that “parties” includes “an attorney who represents the party” and an insurer’s agent. (Code Civ. Proc., § 664.6, subd. (b).) The settlement must include the signatures of the parties seeking to enforce the agreement, and against whom enforcement is sought. (J.B.B. Investment Partners, Ltd. v. Fair (2014) 232 Cal.App.4th 974, 985.) The settlement agreement here complies with the statutory requirements set forth above because it was signed by both parties and their attorneys. (Motion, Reese Decl., Exh. A, p. 3.)

Furthermore, the request for retention of jurisdiction must be made in writing, by the parties, before the action is dismissed for the Court’s retention of jurisdiction to conform to the statutory language. (Wackeen v. Malis (2002) 97 Cal.App.4th 429, 433 [“If, after a suit has been dismissed, a party brings a section 664.6 motion for a judgment on a settlement agreement but cannot present to the court a request for retention of jurisdiction that meets all of these requirements, then enforcement of the agreement must be left to a separate lawsuit.”].) The parties’ request for retention of jurisdiction complies with these requirements because it was made in writing to the Court before the action was dismissed. (Motion, Reese Decl., Exh. A, ¶3.) Therefore, the Court finds that the parties’ settlement agreement is enforceable, and the request for the Court’s retention of jurisdiction is proper, under Code of Civil Procedure section 664.6.

The settlement agreement provides that Defendant would pay Plaintiff $11,750.00 by way of $10.350.00 from insurance, followed by monthly payments starting on July 1, 2019. (Id. at Exh. A, ¶2.) The settlement agreement also provides that if Defendant defaults, judgment in the demand of the complaint, plus costs, less monies paid, may be entered in Plaintiff’s favor. (Id. at Exh. A, ¶3.) Defendant made total payments in the amount of $11,350.00 and thereafter defaulted. (Id. at ¶¶4-5.) Plaintiff seeks an order entering judgment against Defendant based on the settlement amount of $400.00 ($11,750.00 - $11,350.00), and $60.00 in costs. (Id. at ¶8.)

Therefore, Plaintiff State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company’s Motion to Vacate Dismissal, Enforce Settlement Agreement and Enter Judgment is GRANTED IN THE AMOUNT OF $400.00 PRINCIPAL AND $60.00 IN COSTS.