Judge Robert B. Broadbelt, Case 20STCV29679 2022-08-22 Tentative Ruling

Judge: Robert B. Broadbelt, Case: 20STCV29679, Date: 2022-08-22 Tentative Ruling

(1) Petition to Approve Compromise of Pending Action on Behalf of Minor (Naelynn Hernandez)

(2) Petition to Approve Compromise of Pending Action on Behalf of Minor (Nahlia Hernandez)

(3) Petition to Approve Compromise of Pending Action on Behalf of Minor (Nicholas Hernandez)

The court considered the moving papers. No oppositions to the petitions were filed.

Plaintiffs filed this habitability action against defendant Janet Trotter, as Trustee of the Janet Trotter Revocable Trust dated July 11, 2013 on August 6, 2020, asserting three causes of action for (1) breach of the warranty of habitability, (2) negligence, and (3) breach of quiet enjoyment.

Plaintiff and petitioner Blanca Reyes seeks court approval of the settlement on behalf of claimants Naelynn Hernandez, Nahlia Hernandez, and Nicholas Hernandez, who are minors.

Defendant Janet Trotter, as Trustee of the Janet Trotter Revocable Trust dated July 11, 2013 has agreed to pay a total of $106,000 to Plaintiffs to settle this action, of which $2,166 is allocated to each minor claimant.[1]

Of the $2,166 that is allocated to claimant Naelynn Hernandez, $541.50 will be paid to counsel for claimant’s attorney’s fees, $339.30 will be paid to counsel for one-sixth of legal costs incurred, and the remaining $1,285.20 will be deposited in an insured account, subject to withdrawal only on authorization of the court. (Pet., MC-350, ¶¶ 16, 18, subd. (b)(2).)

Of the $2,166 that is allocated to claimant Nahlia Hernandez, $541.50 will be paid to counsel for claimant’s attorney’s fees, $339.30 will be paid to counsel for one-sixth of legal costs incurred, and the remaining $1,285.20 will be deposited in an insured account, subject to withdrawal only on authorization of the court. (Pet., MC-350, ¶¶ 16, 18, subd. (b)(2).)

Of the $2,166 that is allocated to claimant Nicholas Hernandez, $541.50 will be paid to counsel for claimant’s attorney’s fees, $339.30 will be paid to counsel for one-sixth of legal costs incurred, and the remaining $1,285.20 will be deposited in an insured account, subject to withdrawal only on authorization of the court. (Pet., MC-350, ¶¶ 16, 18, subd. (b)(2).)

The compromise of a minor’s disputed claim for damages is valid only after it has been approved, upon the filing of a petition, by the court. (Prob. Code, § 3500.) The petition must be verified by the petitioner, must contain a full disclosure of all information that has any bearing upon the reasonableness of the compromise, and must be prepared on judicial council form MC-350. (Cal. Rules of Court, rule 7.950.)

The court has reviewed the petitions and finds the settlement to be fair and reasonable, and in the best interests of minor claimants Naelynn Hernandez, Nahlia Hernandez, and Nicholas Hernandez.

The court finds that the declarations of Claudia Medina, counsel for minor claimants, is sufficient to support the 25 percent request for attorney’s fees.

The court grants plaintiff and petitioner Blanca Reyes’s petitions to approve the settlement of minor claimants Naelynn Hernandez, Nahlia Hernandez, and Nicholas Hernandez.

The court sets an Order to Show Cause re: filing Receipt and Acknowledgment of Order for the Deposit of Money Into Blocked Account on __________________, 2022, at 11:00 a.m., in Department 53.

The court orders plaintiff and petitioner Blanca Reyes to give notice of this order.

[1] The court notes that each of the petitions mistakenly state that the settling defendant is Naelynn Hernandez. (Petitions, MC-350 ¶ 10, subd. (b).) Naelynn Hernandez is not the settling defendant, but rather, one of the minor claimants. However, the court evaluates the merits of the petitions notwithstanding this error, since Plaintiffs’ counsel has submitted a declaration establishing that (1) the defendant in this action is Janet Trotter, as Trustee of the Janet Trotter Revocable Family Trust dated July 11, 2013, (2) Plaintiffs have settled with defendants, and (3) the defendants will pay to Plaintiffs the settlement sum as described in the petitions. (Petitions, MC-350, Attachments 11(b)(6), Medina Decl., ¶¶ 2-5.)

blanca reyes , et al.; Plaintiffs, vs. JANET TROTTER ; Defendant.	Case No.:	20STCV29679

	Hearing Date:	August 22, 2022

	Time:	10:00 a.m.

	[Tentative] Order RE: (1) petition to approve compromise of pending action on behalf of minor (naelynn hernandez); (2) petition to approve compromise of pending action on behalf of minor (nahlia hernandez); (3) petition to approve compromise of pending action on behalf of minor (nicholas hernandez)