Judge: Salvatore Sirna, Case: 24PSCV00342, Date: 2024-04-02 Tentative Ruling

The Court may change tentative rulings at any time. Therefore, counsel are advised to check this website periodically to determine whether any changes or updates have been made to the tentative ruling. Counsel may submit on a tentative ruling by calling the clerk in Department G at (909) 802-1104 prior to 8:30 a.m. the morning of the hearing.

Case Number: 24PSCV00342    Hearing Date: April 2, 2024    Dept: G

Plaintiff Eric Zhang & Associates LLP’s Application for Leave to Commence Limited Non-Party Discovery

Respondent: NO OPPOSITION

TENTATIVE RULING

Plaintiff Eric Zhang & Associates LLP’s Application for Leave to Commence Limited Non-Party Discovery is GRANTED.

BACKGROUND

This is a defamation action. Plaintiff Eric Zhang & Associates LLP (Eric Zhang & Associates) is an accounting firm based in California that provides accounting and tax services to Chinese American businesses and individuals. Its managing partner, Eric Zhang, is a certified public accountant and has served as president of the Sino-American Certified Public Accountants Association (SACPAA) since January 2021. Upon Zhang’s election as president of the SACPAA, EZ&A alleges a group of unknown individuals including John Doe and Does 2-25 began targeting EZ&A with allegedly false and defamatory reviews on Google.com, Glassdor.com, and Indeed.com. EZ&A alleges the Doe Defendants are business competitors or other members of the SACPAA.

On February 1, 2024, EZ&A filed a complaint against Does 1-25, alleging the following causes of action: (1) defamation, (2) trade libel, (3) online impersonation, and (4) unfair competition.

On February 6, 2024, EZ&A filed the present application. A hearing on their application is set for April 2 with a case management conference and OSC Re: Failure to File Proof of Service set for July 1.

ANALYSIS

EZ&A seek leave from the court to conduct limited non-party discovery with the aim of identifying the Doe Defendants. For the following reasons, the court GRANTS their application.

Pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure section 2019.020, subdivision (b), “on motion and for good cause shown, the court may establish the sequence and timing of discovery for the convenience of parties and witnesses and in the interests of justice.” Furthermore, while a plaintiff may generally only serve a deposition notice twenty days after the service of or appearance by a defendant, “[o]n motion with or without notice, the court, for good cause shown, may grant to a plaintiff leave to serve a deposition notice on an earlier date.” (Code Civ. Proc., § 2025.210, subd. (b).) In this case, EZ&A argues good cause supports allowing them to serve discovery before the appearance or service of the defendants as the discovery will assist them in obtaining those defendants’ identities. In particular, EZ&A seek leave to serve deposition subpoenas on Google, Glassdoor, and Indeed.

In Pearlson v. Does 1 To 646 (1999) 76 Cal.App.4th 1005 (Pearlson), a plaintiff filed a similar request seeking leave to serve deposition subpoenas on nonparties with the aim of obtaining the identities of the Doe defendants. (Id., at p. 1007.) In denying plaintiff’s request, the trial court found the plaintiff failed to demonstrate good cause as the category of Doe defendants was too broad. (Id., at p. 1008-1009.) The Court of Appeal agreed, holding plaintiff’s request was a mere fishing expedition and lacked good cause. (Id., at p. 1011.)

Unlike Pearlson, the present case does not involve a broad category of Doe Defendants. Rather, it is limited to individuals who made specific comments, reviews, or posts about EZ&A on Google, Glassdoor, and Indeed. Furthermore, the court finds good cause exists as obtaining identifying information about these Doe Defendants is a necessary step to locating and serving them.

Accordingly, EZ&A’s application is GRANTED.

CONCLUSION

Based on the foregoing, EZ&A’s application for leave to conduct limited non-party discovery is GRANTED.