Judge: Stephen I. Goorvitch, Case: 19STCV35539, Date: 2022-09-14 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: 19STCV35539    Hearing Date: September 14, 2022    Dept: 39

Arnulfo Alvarez v. Crowne Plaza Hotel, et al.

Case No. 19STCV35539

Motion for Terminating Sanctions

            Plaintiff Arnulfo Alvarez (“Plaintiff”) filed this employment case on September 19, 2019 against Defendant Crescent Hotels & Resorts, LLC (“Defendant”), among others.  Defendant served initial discovery requests—Requests for Production of Documents, Form Interrogatories, and Special Interrogatories—on October 18, 2021, by email.  (See Court’s Minute Order, dated May 12, 2022.)  Defendant granted multiple extensions, up to a final deadline of January 21, 2022.  (See ibid.)  Plaintiff did not comply with his discovery obligations, so Defendant filed a motion to compel, which the Court granted following a hearing on May 12, 2022.  (See ibid.)  The Court ordered Plaintiff to provide code-complaint responses, without objections, within thirty (30) days and ordered Plaintiff to pay monetary sanctions.  Now, Defendant moves for terminating sanctions, as Plaintiff did not comply with this order.  (See Declaration of Sawyer C. Stephens, ¶¶ 12-13.)  Plaintiff filed no opposition to this motion, and there is no good cause in the record.  The Court has considered the option of imposing lesser sanctions, but finds that none would compel Plaintiff’s compliance with his discovery obligations.  The Court previously imposed monetary sanctions to no avail, and there is no reason it should take almost one year for a plaintiff to provide responses to initial discovery responses.  Therefore, the Court grants Defendant’s motion for terminating sanctions.  The Court declines to order additional monetary sanctions. 

            Based upon the foregoing, the Court orders as follows:

            1.         The Court grants Defendant’s motion for terminating sanctions and dismisses Plaintiff’s case against Defendant Crescent Hotels and Resorts, LLC with prejudice.

            2.         The Court advances and vacates the hearing dates for all of Defendant’s remaining motions.  

            3.         Plaintiff named three defendants—Crowne Plaza Hotel, Intercontinental Hotels Group Resources, Inc., and Patty DOE No. 1— on September 19, 2019, but they have never been served.  Therefore, the Court issues an Order to Show Cause why these defendants should not be dismissed for lack of service, per Code of Civil Procedure sections 581 and 583.  The OSC hearing shall be held on October 5, 2022, at 8:30 a.m.  The Court provides notice that if Plaintiff’s counsel does not appear, absent good cause, the Court intends to dismiss these defendants with prejudice. 

            4.         Plaintiff named one defendant—Intercontinental Hotels Group, Inc. dba Crowne Plaza Hotel—on September 19, 2019, but that defendant has never answered the complaint.  Plaintiff has made no apparent effort to take this defendant’s default.  Therefore, the Court issues an Order to Show Cause why this defendant should not be dismissed for lack of prosecution, per Code of Civil Procedure sections 581 and 583.  The OSC hearing shall be held on October 5, 2022, at 8:30 a.m.  The Court provides notice that if Plaintiff’s counsel does not appear, absent good cause, the Court intends to dismiss this defendant with prejudice. 

            5.         The Court’s clerk shall provide notice.