Judge: William A. Crowfoot, Case: 19STCV41164, Date: 2022-08-19 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: 19STCV41164    Hearing Date: August 19, 2022    Dept: 27

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

FOR THE COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES - CENTRAL DISTRICT

BACKGROUND

Defendant El Monte City School District (“Defendant”) filed a Motion to Deem Admitted the Requests for Admission (“RFA”), Set One, served on Johnathan Matthew Lugo, a minor, by and through his Guardian ad Litem, Lorena Vargas (“Plaintiff”) on May 23, 2022.

Plaintiff has neither responded nor requested an extension to respond. As of the filing of the Motion on July 18, 2022, Defendant has not received responses from Plaintiff.  Plaintiff has not filed any opposition to Defendant’s motions.

LEGAL STANDARD

Defendant moves under CCP §2033.280 to deem the RFA admitted. Where there has been no timely response to a request for admission under CCP § 2033.010, the propounding party may move for an order that the genuineness of any documents and the truth of any matters specified in the requests be deemed admitted, as well as for a monetary sanction.  (Code of Civ. Proc., § 2033.280, subd. (b).)  The party who failed to respond waives any objections to the demand, unless the court grants that party relief from the waiver, upon a showing that the party (1) has subsequently served a substantially compliant response, and (2) that the party’s failure to respond was the result of mistake, inadvertence, or excusable neglect.  (Code of Civ. Proc., § 2033.280, subds. (a)(1)-(2).)  The court “shall” grant a motion to deem admitted requests for admissions, “unless it finds that the party to whom the requests for admission have been directed has served, before the hearing on the motion, a proposed response to the requests for admission that is in substantial compliance with Section 2033.220.”  (Code of Civ. Proc., § 2033.280, subd. (c).)

DISCUSSION

Plaintiff has not filed any opposition to Defendants’ motion to deem the RFA admitted.  Nor has Plaintiff otherwise demonstrated that Plaintiff has served, before the hearing on the motion, a proposed response to the RFA.  Accordingly, Defendants’ unopposed motion for an order deeming the RFA admitted is granted pursuant to CCP §2033.280.  Plaintiff is deemed to have admitted the truth of all matters specified in the RFA as of this date.

Defendants request sanctions against Plaintiff.  The Court finds Plaintiff’s failure to respond a misuse of the discovery process.  Sanctions have been sufficiently noticed against Plaintiff.  The Court grants sanctions for one hour to prepare the motion and 1/2 hour to appear at the hearing, at $215.00 per hour, plus the $60.00 filing fee, for a total of $382.50. Plaintiff is ordered to pay monetary sanctions in the amount of $382.50 to Defendant, by and through counsel, within thirty (30) days of notice of this order.

CONCLUSION

Plaintiff is deemed to have admitted the truth of all matters specified in the RFA as of this date.

Plaintiff is ordered to pay monetary sanctions in the amount of $382.50 to Defendant, by and through counsel, within thirty (30) days of notice 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.