Judge: Teresa A. Beaudet, Case: BC695541, Date: 2023-01-26 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: BC695541    Hearing Date: January 26, 2023    Dept: 50

Superior Court of California

County of Los Angeles

Department 50

The motion for summary adjudication brought by Defendants Adir International, LLC dba Curacao and Eric Vital Rubio (jointly, “Defendants”) is continued as set forth below.

The Court notes that on September 1, 2022, the Court issued an Order indicating, inter alia, that “Plaintiff Yuliana Valdovinos has interposed more than 60 evidentiary objections. Due to the voluminous number of objections, the hearing on the motion will be continued to a date that will be set at the Hearing on Objections discussed below.”

The September 1, 2022 Order also provided that “[t]he Court orders the parties to meet and confer by telephone or in person in a serious and good faith effort to resolve and eliminate the objections,” and that “[i]f any material objections remain unresolved, the parties are to set them forth in a joint statement with the text, the objection, and the argument of each side in favor of their respective positions regarding the remaining material objections, along with a space for a ruling.” The joint statement was to be filed on or before September 9, 2022, with a courtesy copy delivered to Department 50. Per the Order, “[t]he Court will review any remaining objections with the parties at a hearing on 9/19 at 3:00 p.m.”

On September 19, 2022, the Court issued a minute order providing, inter alia, that “[t]he Court finds Plaintiff/Plaintiff’s Counsel has not appeared nor contacted the Court regarding their failure to appear…The Court also orders Plaintiff to revise the objections to reflect proper objections (e.g., “disputed” is not an objection) and to provide argument as to the basis for the objections stated…On the Court’s own motion, the Hearing - Other Evidentiary Objections scheduled for 09/19/2022, and Hearing on Motion for Summary Adjudication Adir International’s and Rubio’s motion (set by Court per order of 7/11/22) scheduled for 09/19/2022 are continued to 10/27/22…”

On October 27, 2022, the Court issued a minute order indicating, inter alia, that “[c]ounsel for Plaintiff can reduce the objections further as discussed at the hearing and provide the support for any remaining objections and provide to defendant’s counsel for inclusion in the revised joint statement which will be filed by noon November 3, 2022.”

On November 3, 2022, Defendants’ counsel filed a declaration indicating, inter alia, that on Wednesday, November 2, 2022, she sent an email to Plaintiff’s counsel, reminding her of Plaintiff’s obligation and the briefing schedule instructed by the Court. (Lutz Decl., ¶ 3.) As of November 3, 2022 at 11:00 a.m., Defendant’s counsel’s office had not received Plaintiff’s reduced objections and supplemental argument. (Lutz Decl., ¶ 5.)

The Court notes that on November 3, 2022, Plaintiff filed a document entitled “Per the Court Order of October 27, 2022, Revised: Plaintiff Yuliana Valdovinos’s Evidentiary Objections to the Defendants’ Separate Statement of Undisputed Material Facts in Support of Their Motion for Summary Judgment.” This document lists 23 objections. However, Plaintiff did not file a joint statement setting forth the text, the objection, and the argument of each side in favor of their respective positions. It is not clear that Plaintiff’s counsel provided Defendant’s counsel with the revised objections.

Lastly, the Court notes that the initial September 1, 2022 Order also indicated that “Defendants filed a ‘Notice of Lodgment of Evidence in Support of Defendants Adir International, LLC dba Curacao and Eric Vital Rubio’s Motion for Summary Adjudication.’ The Exhibits referenced in the Notice of Lodgment were not attached. The Court orders Defendants to file the Notice of Lodgment with the subject Exhibits attached.” (September 1, 2022 Order at p. 2:13-16.) Defendants do not appear to have since filed their Notice of Lodgment with the subject Exhibits attached.

Based on the foregoing, the hearing on Defendants’ motion is continued to _______________, 2023 at 2:00 p.m. The Court orders that the joint statement with Plaintiff’s revised objections must be filed on or before _______________, 2023, with a courtesy copy delivered to Department 50. The Court further orders that Defendants’ Notice of Lodgment of Evidence with the Exhibits attached must be filed on or before _______________, 2023.

Defendants are ordered to give notice of this Order.

DATED:  January 26, 2023                           

________________________________

Hon. Teresa A. Beaudet

Judge, Los Angeles Superior Court