Judge: Michael P. Linfield, Case: 22STCV29829, Date: 2024-04-24 Tentative Ruling

The Court often posts its tentative several days in advance of the hearing. Please re-check the tentative rulings the day before the hearing to be sure that the Court has not revised the ruling since the time it was posted.

Please call the clerk at (213) 633-0154 by 4:00 pm. the court day before the hearing if you wish to submit on the tentative.

Case Number: 22STCV29829    Hearing Date: April 24, 2024    Dept: 34

        This case was filed on September 13, 2022. 

At the first Case Management Conference on January 11, 2023, One day prior to the CMC, Plaintiffs filed their CMS, indicating that all defendants had been served.  (See Plaintiff’s CMS, filed 1/10/23, §3(a).) Plaintiff’s counsel also orally informed the Court at the CMC that all the Defendants had been served. 

        Nonetheless, the Court continued the CMC until February 16, 2023 because Plaintiff had not filed proofs of service.  At the CMC on February 16, 2023, Plaintiff’s counsel orally informed the Court that the Defendants had been served in September.  (See also, Plaintiff’s CMS, filed 2/2/3, §3(a), where Plaintiff checked the box that all defendants had been served.) Based on Plaintiffs’ counsel’s representations, the Court scheduled a Final Status Conference for April 24, 2024 and a five-day jury trial for May 6, 2024.

        On February 15, 2023, Plaintiff’s counsel submitted a declaration asking for a 30-60 day continuance of the trial because his mother had recently died.  The Court granted the request for a continuance on February 16, 2023.

        On March 21, 2023, Plaintiff requested entries of default against defendants.  These requests were rejected by the Clerk on March 22, 2023.

        At today’s Final Status Conference, Plaintiff’s counsel informed the Court that none of the Defendants had actually been served.  In other words, Plaintiff’s counsel had lied to or misled the Court on three separate occasions:  twice when he stated (both orally and in Plaintiffs’ CMS’s) that defendants had been served; and once on 2/15/2023, when he asked for a 30-60 day continuance of the trial based on medical reasons – and not informing the Court that trial could not take place because defendants had never been served.

        Plaintiff also failed to file any FSC documents for today’s hearing as required by the Court.

        Because of Plaintiff’s counsel’s repeated deceptions, and because Plaintiff is unprepared to proceed to trial, the Court DISMISSES the case without prejudice.

        Plaintiff to give notice.