Judge Timothy B. Taylor, Case 37-2023-00017275-CU-PA-CTL 2023-10-13 Tentative Ruling

Judge: Timothy B. Taylor, Case: 37-2023-00017275-CU-PA-CTL, Date: 2023-10-13 Tentative Ruling

SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA,

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HALL OF JUSTICE

TENTATIVE RULINGS - October 12, 2023

10/13/2023 01:30:00 PM C-72 COUNTY OF SAN DIEGO

JUDICIAL OFFICER:Timothy Taylor

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Civil - Unlimited Petition re: Arbitration Award Hearing on Petition 37-2023-00017275-CU-PA-CTL VALERIE CARDEIRO AS TRUSTEE OF THE VALERIE CARDEIRO REVOCABLE TRUST DATED SEPTEMBER 17 1992 VS KANESHIRO [IMAGED] CAUSAL DOCUMENT/DATE FILED: Motion to Confirm Arbitration Award, 09/15/2023

Tentative Rulings on Motion to Confirm Arbitration Award

Cardeiro v. Kaneshiro, Case No. 2023-17275 Related Case: Kaneshiro v. Cardeiro, Case No. 2022-32466 (dismissed 7/10/23) Oct. 13, 2023, 1:30 p.m., Dept. 72 1. Overview and Procedural Posture.

A dispute arising out of the parties' April 2022 agreements whereby plaintiff was to purchase defendants' Sunset Cliffs veterinary practice, as well as the real estate from which the practice operated, gave rise to two lawsuits filed in this courthouse. Two written agreements were negotiated: an Asset Purchase Agreement and an 'AirCRE' form real estate purchase contract. Defendants cancelled the transaction in June, and Case No. 2022-32466 was filed in August, 2022. The case was assigned to Judge Bacal, but plaintiff challenged her and the case was reassigned to Dept. 72. ROA 10-12.

Defendants sought an order compelling arbitration pursuant to a provision in the Asset Purchase Agreement.* ROA 13-15. Plaintiff filed opposition.** ROA 20-21. Defendants filed reply. ROA 22-23.

The court reviewed the papers and published a tentative ruling on January 4, 2023. ROA 26. On January 6, 2023, the court heard thoughtful argument from counsel and took the matter under submission. ROA 29. The court's decision was filed January 9, 2023. ROA 34. The court concluded the parties to the Asset Purchase Agreement had never actually consented to arbitration.

At the March 30, 2023 CMC, the court calendared (at Cardeiro's request) a demurrer to the complaint and a motion to expunge the lis pendens recorded and filed by Kaneshiro at the outset of the case (ROA 16). ROA 41-45. In July, 2023, Case No. 2022-32466 was voluntarily dismissed. ROA 59.

The present case – involving the same agreements, counsel, and parties (but with their roles reversed) – was filed April 25, 2023 as Case No. 2023-17275. By this action, Cardeiro seeks to confirm an arbitration award in the dispute over real estate agreement. The matter is before the court today. The court has reviewed the petition, as well as the moving, opposition, and reply papers. ROA 1, 7-9, 28-29, 31-33. No further submissions are authorized in connection with the instant motion.

Calendar No.: Event ID: TENTATIVE RULINGS

2999305 56 CASE NUMBER: CASE TITLE: VALERIE CARDEIRO AS TRUSTEE OF THE VALERIE CARDEIRO 37-2023-00017275-CU-PA-CTL The case is also set for a CMC. ROA 26-27.

2. Applicable Standards.

Under California law, the scope of judicial review of arbitration awards is very narrow. VVA-Two, LLC v. Impact Development Group, LLC (2020) 48 Cal.App.5th 985, 998. A court must confirm an arbitration award (1) if the petition to confirm the arbitration award is properly filed and served; and (2) if the court concludes that it does not need to correct or vacate the arbitration award. Code Civ. Proc. § 1286.

Code of Civil Procedure section 1286.2 sets forth the grounds for vacation of an arbitrator's award. One such ground is that the arbitrator exceeded his or her powers. Code Civ. Proc. § 1286.2(a)(4). '[A]n arbitrator exceeds his powers when he acts in a manner not authorized by the contract or by law.' Jordan v. California Dept. of Motor Vehicles (2002) 100 Cal.App.4th 431, 443.

3. Discussion and Ruling.

The petition to confirm the arbitration award is granted. The court construes the opposition as a request to vacate the award. That request is denied.

A petition to confirm an arbitration award must include the arbitration agreement, the name of the arbitrator, and a copy of the award and the written opinion of the arbitrator. Code Civ. Proc. § 1285.4.

Here, all of the required documents are attached to the petition. There is also no dispute that the petition was timely filed and served. Code Civ. Proc. § 1288. Thus, the court must grant the petition unless it determines that the award should be vacated.

Kaneshiro contends the arbitrator exceeded her powers by (1) failing to consider Kaneshiro's defenses and (2) awarding excessive attorney's fees to Cardeiro. The court disagrees.

The argument that the arbitrator did not properly evaluate Kaneshiro's defenses is, at bottom, a disagreement with the arbitrator's factual findings. Such findings are not subject to judicial review. See Jordan, supra, 100 Cal.App.4th at 443 ('Courts may not review the merits of the controversy, the validity of the arbitrator's reasoning, or the sufficiency of the evidence.'); see also Gonzales v. Interinsurance Exchange (1978) 84 Cal.App.3d 58, 63 (petition to vacate award fatally defective in that it did not allege a failure to hear evidence, but a failure to consider evidence, which is not a ground to vacate an arbitration award).

For similar reasons, the argument challenging the fee award to Cardeiro lacks merit. It is undisputed that the parties submitted the issue of attorney's fees to the arbitrator. (See Pet., Attachment 4(b) at ¶ 16.) Whether the arbitrator correctly decided the issue is not subject to judicial review. See JP-Richardson, LLC v. Pacific Oak SOR Richardson Portfolio JV, LLC (2021) 65 Cal.App.5th 1177, 1195 ('Factual and legal errors regarding the reasonableness of the awarded fees in arbitration are not reviewable.'); see also San Francisco Housing Authority v. Service Employees Internat. Union, Local 790 (2010) 182 Cal.App.4th 933, 943 ('Absent an express and unambiguous limitation in the contract or the submission to arbitration, an arbitrator has the authority to find the facts, interpret the contract, and award any relief rationally related to his or her factual findings and contractual interpretation.').

Accordingly, the motion is granted, and Cardeiro is ordered to forthwith submit a form of judgment for the court's signature.

4. CMC.

The CMC is ordered off calendar as moot.

_______________________ *As will become clear, the real estate agreement was already the subject of an arbitration.

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2999305 56 CASE NUMBER: CASE TITLE: VALERIE CARDEIRO AS TRUSTEE OF THE VALERIE CARDEIRO 37-2023-00017275-CU-PA-CTL **But called it an 'opposition to a motion to compel further responses to interrogatories.' ROA 20.

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2999305 56