Judge: William A. Crowfoot, Case: 19STCV37167, Date: 2022-12-20 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: 19STCV37167    Hearing Date: December 20, 2022    Dept: 27

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

FOR THE COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES - CENTRAL DISTRICT

 

CITY OF LOS ANGELES,

                   Plaintiff(s),

          vs.

 

FRANCISCO JAVIER MENDIVIL,

 

                   Defendant(s).

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      CASE NO.: 19STCV37167

 

[TENTATIVE] ORDER RE: DEFENDANT JAVIER MENDIVIL’S MOTION FOR ORDER COMPELLING RESPONSES TO SUPPLEMENTAL INTERROGATORIES AND FOR AN ORDER IMPOSING MONETARY SANCTIONS

 

Dept. 27

1:30 p.m.

December 20, 2022

 

On October 18, 2019, City of Los Angeles filed this action against defendant Francisco Javier Mendivil (“Defendant”).  On April 1, 2020, plaintiff Louis Edward Davis (erroneously named as “Louis Edward David”) filed another action against Defendant.  The two actions were consolidated because they both arose from the same April 23, 2020 motor vehicle collision. 

On April 8, 2022, Defendant served Plaintiff with Supplemental Interrogatories (Set One).  Plaintiff’s responses were due by May 10, 2022, but no responses were received.  On November 21, 2022, Defendant filed this motion for an order compelling Plaintiff to provide responses and imposing sanctions against Plaintiff and counsel of record in the amount of $225.47. 

Where a party fails to serve timely responses to discovery requests, the court may make an order compelling responses.  (Code Civ. Proc., § 2030.290, subd. (b).)   A party that fails to serve timely responses waives any objections to the request, including ones based on privilege or the protection of attorney work product.  (Code Civ. Proc., § 2030.290, subd. (a).) 

Plaintiff did not oppose the motion and it is undisputed responses were not served.  Defendant’s motion is GRANTED and Plaintiff is ordered to serve verified responses without objections to Defendant’s Supplemental Interrogatories (Set One) within 10 days of the date of this Order.

The Code of Civil Procedure provides that the court shall impose a monetary sanction against the party who unsuccessfully makes or opposes a motion to compel, unless the party acted with substantial justification or the sanction would otherwise be unjust.  (Code Civ. Proc., § 2030.290, subd. (c), 2031.300, subd. (c).)  The Court finds evidence of neither.  Defendant’s request for monetary sanctions is GRANTED and imposed against Plaintiff and counsel of record, jointly and severally, in the reduced amount of $220.17 for 1 hours at defense counsel’s hourly rate of $160.17.00 and $60.00 in filing fees, to be paid within 10 days of the date of this Order.

Moving party to give notice.

 

 

 

Parties who intend to submit on this tentative must send an email to the Court at SSCDEPT27@lacourt.org indicating intention to submit on the tentative as directed by the instructions provided on the court website at www.lacourt.org.  Please be advised that if you submit on the tentative and elect not to appear at the hearing, the opposing party may nevertheless appear at the hearing and argue the matter.  Unless you receive a submission from all other parties in the matter, you should assume that others might appear at the hearing to argue.  If the Court does not receive emails from the parties indicating submission on this tentative ruling and there are no appearances at the hearing, the Court may, at its discretion, adopt the tentative as the final order or place the motion off calendar.