Judge: Robert C. Longstreth, Case: 37-2023-00034170-CU-PT-CTL, Date: 2023-11-17 Tentative Ruling

SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA,

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HALL OF JUSTICE

TENTATIVE RULINGS - November 16, 2023

11/17/2023  08:30:00 AM  C-65 COUNTY OF SAN DIEGO

JUDICIAL OFFICER:Robert Longstreth

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Civil - Unlimited  Petitions - Other Hearing on Petition 37-2023-00034170-CU-PT-CTL PETITION OF BENTZEN FINANCIAL LLC [IMAGED] CAUSAL DOCUMENT/DATE FILED: Amended Petition, 08/16/2023

Petitioner Bentzen Financial, LLC's First Amended Petition for Approval for Transfer of Structured Settlement Payment Rights is DENIED without prejudice. (ROA 11.) Petitioner initially filed a Petition on August 10, 2023, that identified the Real Party in Interest by only the initials 'K.S.,' and heavily redacted the attached exhibits, including much of the information that would be relevant to the court's determination of the petition. (Ins. Code § 10139.5(b).) Petitioner never sought or obtained a court order to seal any portion of the petition, nor was any court order sought or obtained to identify the Real Party in Interest exclusively by way of a pseudonym. 'Unless confidentiality is required by law, court records are presumed to be open.' (Cal. R. Court, rule 2.550(c).) Just a few days later, Petitioner filed a First Amended Petition on August 16, 2023. Though the amended petition has now removed the redactions from the attached exhibits, the petition itself still identifies the Real Party in Interest only by the initials 'K.S.' A petition for approval of a transfer of structured settlement payment rights must state '[t]he payee's name, address, and age.' (Ins. Code § 10139.5(c)(1); see also Code Civ. Proc. § 367, requiring actions to be prosecuted 'in the name of the real party in interest.') The Petition and First Amended Petition both fail to comply with this statutory requirement.

The court sets an OSC re: Why An Amended Petition That Does Not Use A Pseudonym Or Otherwise Redact Information Should Not Be Filed, or, in the alternative, Why The Case Should Not Be Dismissed, for February 16, 2024 at 10:45 a.m. If an amended petition that does not use a pseudonym and does not contain any redactions is filed, and the Petitioner advises the calendar clerk of this filing before February 9, 2024, this OSC will go off-calendar.

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