Judge: Ronald F. Frank, Case: 22TRCV00313, Date: 2023-01-12 Tentative Ruling
Case Number: 22TRCV00313 Hearing Date: January 12, 2023 Dept: 8
Tentative Ruling¿
¿¿
HEARING DATE: December 16, 2022¿¿
¿¿
CASE NUMBER: 22TRCV00313
¿¿
CASE NAME: Brian
Poulter v. Ricardo Juarez, et al
¿¿
MOVING PARTY: Defendant,
Ricardo Juarez
¿¿
RESPONDING PARTY: Plaintiff,
Brian Poulter
¿¿
TRIAL DATE: None set¿
¿¿
MOTION:¿ (1) Motion to Set Aside Entry of
Default and Judgments, to Quash any Writ of Possession/Execution, and for Leave
to Defend the Action
¿
Tentative Rulings: (1) GRANTED, and the Proposed Answer attached to the
moving papers is deemed filed and served as of January 12, 2023. Case is set for trial on March 20, 2023 at
9:30 a.m., Inglewood Dept. 8
¿¿
This
continued hearing follows an earlier on where the Court’s tentative ruling was
to deny the motion to vacate. The Court
now changes its tentative ruling, in part because the dollar amount of the default
judgment was very thinly supported, in part because the Bellm case that Plaintiff
relies upon is factually distinguishable from the case at bar, and in part on
the prevailing public policy favoring trial on the merits. While there may or may not be a successful
defense to the merits of the lawsuit, it does appear to the Court there may be
a defense to the sizeable amount asserted in the application for default and to
the asserted punitive damages. The Court strains to find a barely justified excusable neglect here,
and reluctantly grants the motion despite considerable evidence of defendant’s lack
of diligence and of defendant’s blocking of plaintiff’s efforts to communicate
with him about the pending litigation. The
Court sets this case for expedited trial, allowing sufficient time for the parties
to discuss a potential settlement or to prepare for what should be a short
trial on the merits.
Final Status Conference set for March 10, 2023 at 9:30 a.m., and
Court trial set for March 20, 2023 at 9:30 a.m.
The Court will issue a scheduling order.