Judge: William A. Crowfoot, Case: 23AHCV00595, Date: 2023-11-22 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: 23AHCV00595    Hearing Date: November 22, 2023    Dept: 3

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

FOR THE COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES - NORTHEAST DISTRICT

 

CHIN JEN LIU,

                   Plaintiff(s),

          vs.

 

LOS ANGELES COUNTY METROPOLITAN TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY, et al.,

 

                   Defendant(s).

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      CASE NO.: 23AHCV00595

 

[TENTATIVE] ORDER RE: MOTION TO COMPEL COMPLIANCE WITH DEPOSITION SUBPOENA

 

Dept. 3

8:30 a.m.

November 22, 2023

 

On March 17, 2023, plaintiff Chin Jen Liu (“Plaintiff”) filed this action against defendants Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (“LACMTA”) and Jose Dolores Villanueva. Plaintiff alleges that on April 4, 2022, he was riding his bike westbound on Huntington Drive when he was struck by a bus owned by LACMTA and driven by Villanueva, while Villanueva was in the course and scope of his employment with LACMTA.

On August 29, 2023, defendant LACMTA filed this motion for an order compelling nonparty Green Cross Medical Surgical (“Green Cross”) to comply with a deposition subpoena which sought Plaintiff’s medical records (“Subpoena”) and ordering Green Cross to pay monetary sanctions in the amount of $1,025. The motion is unopposed and Plaintiff did not file any objections in response to the Subpoena.

A party seeking discovery from a person who is not a party to the action may obtain discovery by oral deposition, written deposition, or deposition subpoena for production of business records. (Code Civ. Proc., § 2020.010.) Personal service of any deposition subpoena is effective to require a deponent who is a resident of California to: personally appear and testify, if the subpoena so specifies; to produce any specified documents; and to appear at a court session if the subpoena so specifies. (Code Civ. Proc., § 2020.220, subd. (c).) A motion for an order compelling compliance may be sought pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure section 1987.1

Green Cross did not oppose this motion and it is undisputed that: 1) the Subpoena was served correctly and 2) Plaintiff did not file objections. Accordingly, the motion is granted and Green Cross is ordered to produce documents pursuant to the Subpoena within 10 days of the date of this order. LACMTA’s request for sanctions pursuant to CCP 2025.480 is DENIED because CCP 2025.480 is only applicable to oral depositions, not deposition subpoenas for the production of business records directed to nonparties.

Moving party to give notice.

Dated this 22nd day of November 2023

 

 

 

 

William A. Crowfoot

Judge of the Superior Court

 

 

Parties who intend to submit on this tentative must send an email to the Court at ALHDEPT3@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.