Judge Stephen P. Pfahler, Case 20CHCV00519 2022-09-06 Tentative Ruling

MOVING PARTY: Defendants Farmers Insurance Exchange, Truck Insurance Exchange, Fire Insurance Exchange, Mid-Century Insurance Company, and Farmers New World Life Insurance Company

In the operative Second Amended Complaint, Plaintiff Vincent Kody Pappadato alleges claims of fraud, negligent misrepresentation, and breach of contract against defendants Farmers Insurance Exchange, Truck Insurance Exchange, Fire Insurance Exchange, Mid-Century Insurance Company, Farmers New World Life, Foremost, Bristol West, Farmers Group, Inc. d/b/a Farmers Underwriters Association, and Lou DeAngelis.

Defendants Farmers Insurance Exchange, Truck Insurance Exchange, Fire Insurance Exchange, Mid-Century Insurance Company, and Farmers New World Life move to compel compliance with the April 6, 2022 discovery order for production of responses to Form Interrogatories – Employment (set one) and Requests for Production of Documents (set one).

The court electronic filing system shows no opposition or reply at the time of the tentative ruling publication cutoff.

On April 6, 2022, the court ordered Plaintiff to serve responses to Request for Production of Documents (set one) and Form Interrogatories – Employment (set one) within 10 days. According to moving defendants, no responses have been received. Defendant moves under Code of Civil Procedure sections 2030.300 and 2031.320 seeking to compel compliance, but neither section provides a mechanism for enforcing an already existing order. Code of Civil Procedure section 2031.320 addresses a response whereby a party agrees to produce documents, not a court order. The court declines to find such a basis for the requested relief under these sections. The court therefore also declines to impose further monetary sanctions under the provided authority. (See Code Civ. Proc., §2023.030, subd. (b).)[1]

Three motions for summary judgment set for March 20-22, 2023, with trial set for June 12, 2023.

[1]Nothing in the subject motion requests evidentiary or issue sanctions, due to a violation of a court order compelling discovery. The request for further monetary sanctions lacks proper support.