Judge Salvatore Sirna, Case 21PSCV00418 2023-05-03 Tentative Ruling

Judge: Salvatore Sirna, Case: 21PSCV00418, Date: 2023-05-03 Tentative Ruling

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Case Number: 21PSCV00418 Hearing Date: May 3, 2023 Dept: G

Plaintiff Pengyu Wang’s Motion to Enforce Settlement Agreement

Respondent: NO OPPOSITION

TENTATIVE RULING

Plaintiff Pengyu Wang’s Motion to Enforce Settlement Agreement is GRANTED. Plaintiff is also awarded reasonable attorney fees and costs in the amount of $1,760.

BACKGROUND

This is a collections action. On April 10, 2019, Plaintiff Pengyu Wang entered into a written agreement with Defendant Bo Wang in which Plaintiff agreed to loan Defendant $193,115. On October 10, Plaintiff alleges Defendant breached the agreement by failing to repay the principal loan and accrued interest.

On May 19, 2021, Plaintiff filed a complaint against Defendant and Does 1-50, alleging the following causes of action: (1) breach of contract, (2) fraud, and (3) common counts.

On August 4, 2021, Plaintiff filed a First Amended Complaint (FAC) against same defendants alleging (1) breach of contract and (2) common counts.

On March 24, 2022, Plaintiff filed a motion for summary judgment that the court denied on July 11. On September 8, Plaintiff filed a notice of settlement, stating parties agreed to dismiss the action by June 31, 2023, if the terms of the settlement were satisfied.

On March 2, 2023, Plaintiff filed the present motion. A hearing on the motion is set for May 3 along with an OSC re: Dismissal on July 10.

ANALYSIS

Plaintiff seeks an entry of judgment enforcing the terms of a settlement agreement between Plaintiff and Defendant. For the following reasons, the court GRANTS Plaintiff’s motion.

Legal Standard

Code of Civil Procedure section 664.6 provides a summary procedure that enables courts to enforce a settlement agreement by entering a judgment pursuant to the terms of the parties’ settlement. In relevant part, it provides as follows:

If parties to pending litigation stipulate, in a writing signed by the parties outside of the presence of the court or orally before the court, for settlement of the case, or part thereof, the court, upon motion, may enter judgment pursuant to the terms of the settlement. If requested by the parties, the court may retain jurisdiction over the parties to enforce the settlement until performance in full of the terms of the settlement. (Code Civ. Proc., § 664.6, subd. (a).)

A writing is considered signed if signed by the party or an attorney who represents the party. (Code Civ. Proc., § 664.6, subd. (b).)

Discussion

In this case, Plaintiff provides a copy of a written settlement agreement signed August 2022. (Ma Decl., ¶ 4, Ex. A.) According to the agreement, Defendant agreed to pay Plaintiff a lump sum payment and ten monthly payments from September 25, 2022, to June 25, 2023. (Ma Decl., ¶ 4, Ex. A.) While Defendant made the lump sum payment on August 25, 2022, and a monthly payment of $9,000 on September 27, Plaintiff alleges Defendant failed to make any further payments. (Ma Decl., ¶ 5-9.) Thus, the court finds Plaintiff has established the existence of a settlement agreement. Furthermore, the court is not in receipt of any timely opposition from Defendant.

Accordingly, Plaintiff’s motion is GRANTED.

Plaintiff also requests an award of attorney fees and costs pursuant to section 10 the Settlement Agreement. The court agrees and awards Plaintiff reasonable attorney fees and costs. Utilizing the lodestar approach and in light of the totality of the circumstances, the court finds reasonable attorney fees and costs to be $1,760 ($1,700 for 4.5 hours drafting the present motion and 4 hours drafting a motion to file the settlement agreement under seal at $200 an hour plus $60 in filing fees).

CONCLUSION

Based on the foregoing, the court GRANTS Plaintiff’s motion to enforce settlement agreement and awards reasonable attorney fees and costs in the amount of $1,760.