Judge: Michael E. Whitaker, Case: 19STCV14928, Date: 2022-10-10 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: 19STCV14928    Hearing Date: October 10, 2022    Dept: 32

PLEASE NOTE:   Parties are encouraged to meet and confer concerning this tentative ruling to determine if a resolution may be reached.  If the parties are unable to reach a resolution and a party intends to submit on this tentative ruling, the party must send an email to the Court at sscdept32@lacourt.org indicating that party’s intention to submit.  The email shall include the case number, date and time of the hearing, counsel’s contact information (if applicable), and the identity of the party submitting on this tentative ruling.  If the Court does not receive an email indicating the parties are submitting on this tentative ruling and there are no appearances at the hearing, the Court may place the motion off calendar or adopt the tentative ruling as the order of the Court.  If all parties do not submit on this tentative ruling, they should arrange to appear in-person or remotely (which is highly encouraged).  Further, after the Court has posted/issued a tentative ruling, the Court has the inherent authority to prohibit the withdrawal of the subject motion and adopt the tentative ruling as the order of the Court. 

TENTATIVE RULING

MOTION

            Plaintiff Luz Vazquez (Plaintiff) sued Defendant J.C. Penney Corporation, Inc. (Defendant) based on injuries Plaintiff alleges she sustained from a slip and fall at a J.C. Penney store.

            In May of 2020, Defendant filed a petition for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, Corpus Christi Division (Bankruptcy Court). Defendant moves for this Court to dismiss Plaintiff’s Complaint with prejudice, arguing Plaintiff’s claims are subject to the orders stemming bankruptcy proceedings.

REQUEST FOR JUDICIAL NOTICE

Under Evidence Code section 452, “[j]udicial notice may be taken of the following matters to the extent that they are not embraced within Section 451: (a) The decisional, constitutional, and statutory law of any state of the United States and the resolutions and private acts of the Congress of the United States and of the Legislature of this state. (b) Regulations and legislative enactments issued by or under the authority of the United States or any public entity in the United States. (c) Official acts of the legislative, executive, and judicial departments of the United States and of any state of the United States. (d) Record of (1) any court of this state or (2) any court of record of the United States or of any state of the United States …  (g) Facts and propositions that are of such common knowledge within the territorial jurisdictions of the court that they cannot reasonably be the subject of dispute. (h) Facts and propositions that are not reasonably subject to dispute and are capably of immediate and accurate determination by resort to sources of reasonably indisputable accuracy.” (Evid. Code, § 452, subds. (a)-(d), (g), (h).)

The Court “shall take notice of any matter specified in Section 452 if a party requests it and: (a) Gives each adverse party sufficient notice of the request, through the pleadings or otherwise, to enable such adverse party to prepare to meet the request; and (b) Furnishes the court with sufficient information to enable it to take judicial notice of the matter.”  (Evid. Code, § 453.) 

            Here, Defendant requests that the Court take judicial notice of records from the Bankruptcy Court in Case No. 20-20182 (DRJ) and this Court in support of the motion to dismiss.  Having reviewed the records and finding that they are records of (1) any court of this state or (2) any court of record of the United States or of any state of the United States, the  Court grants Defendant’s request to take judicial notice of Exhibits 1-9 under Evidence Code section 452, subdivision (d).  (See Request for Judicial Notice, Exhibits 1-9.) 

ANALYSIS

            Under Saltarelli & Steponovich v. Douglas (1995) 40 Cal.App.4th, a motion to dismiss “may be treated as a nonstatuotry motion for judgment on the pleadings.” 

            A motion for judgment on the pleadings has the same function as a general demurrer, but may be made after the time to demur has expired. (Code Civ. Proc., § 438, subd. (f).)  “Like a demurrer, the grounds for the motion [for judgment on the pleadings] must appear on the face of the challenged pleading or from any matter of which the court is required to take judicial notice.” (Civic Partners Stockton, LLC v. Youssefi (2013) 218 Cal.App.4th 1005, 1013.)  In ruling on a motion for judgment on the pleadings, “[a]ll allegations in the complaint and matters upon which judicial notice may be taken are assumed to be true.” (Rippon v. Bowen (2008) 160 Cal.App.4th 1308, 1313.)   

            Here, Defendant argues the Court should dismiss Plaintiff’s complaint as to Defendant for two reasons.

First, the Bankruptcy Court’s order, which Defendant is subject to, enjoins all entities who have held, hold, or may hold claims against Defendant, from commencing or continuing any action on account of such claims. (See Request for Judicial Notice, Exhibit 4, ¶ 114.) Consequently, Defendant argues that because Plaintiff’s claims are within the purview of the Bankruptcy Court’s order, Plaintiff is enjoined from continuing the action as to Defendant.

Second, the Bankruptcy Court set the most recent bar date for claims to be filed in the Bankruptcy Court against Defendant as December 8, 2021. (See Request for Judicial Notice, Exhibit 7.)  But Plaintiff has not filed a claim in the Bankruptcy Court. (See Declaration of Kathy A. Hung, ¶¶ 2-6.)  Because Plaintiff failed to submit a timely claim by the bar date, her claims are discharged.

For the foregoing reasons, the Court finds that the orders issued by the Bankruptcy Court are obstacles to Plaintiff’s claims against Defendant which cannot be cured by amendment.

CONCLUSION AND ORDER

Therefore, the Court grants Defendant’s motion to dismiss under Code of Civil Procedure section 438 without leave to amend.  Defendant shall provide notice of the Court’s ruling and file a proof of service of such.