Judge: Steven J. Kleifield, Case: 21STCV27536, Date: 2023-03-02 Tentative Ruling

Inform the clerk if you submit on the tentative ruling. If moving and opposing parties submit, no appearance is necessary.

Case Number: 21STCV27536    Hearing Date: March 2, 2023    Dept: 57

The Court's tentative decision is to grant Plaintiff Seek Capital LLC's motions to compel nonparties DH & RK Investments, LLC dba Lendzi, David Halverson, and Ryan Kelly (collectively, "the Subpoenaed Parties") to produce documents in response to deposition subpoenas Seek Capital issued to them calling for the production of certain documents.  Seek Capital alleges that  Defendant Jay Omayan was employed by Seek Capital, and that while employed by Seek Capital, Omayan misappropriated Seek Capital's trade secrets and  provided that information to Lendzi, which is a competitor of Seek Capital and was formed by Halverson and Kelly.   Seek Capital issued the subpoenas at issue here on July 7, 2022, after being told by Omayan that relevant communications he had with Lendzi, Halverson, and Kelly using a Lendzi email address would be in the control of the Subpoenaed Parties.   Seek Capital has received no documents from the Subpoenaed Parties in  response to the subpoenas.   The Court rejects the Subpoenaed Parties position in response to Seek Capital's motions to compel that the Subpoenaed Parties' compliance with the subpoenas should be made contingent on the Subpoenaed Parties being given access to documents that Seek Capital produced to Omayan pursuant to a protective order.  The Subpoenaed Parties do not require access to that material in order to comply with the subpoenas.    Nor, in the Court's view, are Seek Capital's motions to compel and the Subpoenaed Parties' claim of entitlement to access to material that Seek Capital produced to Omayan rendered moot by the Subpoenaed Parties' separate action for declaratory relief that they filed against Seek Capital earlier this year.  Seek Capital did not ask for sanctions to be imposed against the Subpoenaed Parties, and the Court is not awarding any.