Judge: William A. Crowfoot, Case: 23AHCV01733, Date: 2024-12-10 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: 23AHCV01733    Hearing Date: December 10, 2024    Dept: 3

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

FOR THE COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES - NORTHEAST DISTRICT

          On November 1, 2024, plaintiffs Lawanda Jackson and Kayzah Jackson (collectively, “Plaintiffs”) filed this motion to amend the complaint and name the correct defendant. The motion is unopposed.

          Plaintiffs’ counsel, Barry Zelner, describes the general confusion in identifying and naming the correct defendant in this case. At first, Plaintiffs’ initial complaint named only State Farm Insurance. On December 5, 2023, Plaintiffs filed a First Amended Complaint naming State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance (“State Farm Mutual”) and State Farm General Insurance Company (“State Farm General”) and referred to them collectively as “State Farm.” State Farm General was eventually dismissed because all parties mistakenly believed that the correct defendant was State Farm Mutual. (Zelner Decl., ¶ 3.) However, it was later determined that the correct defendant was in fact State Farm General, therefore Plaintiffs filed a notice of errata and attempted to file an amended request to dismiss State Farm Mutual. This “amended” request for dismissal was not entered, but the parties continued to litigate with the understanding that State Farm Mutual had been dismissed and that State Farm General was the correct defendant. It was then discovered in August 2024 that State Farm General was no longer a party. (Zelner Decl., Ex. 5.)  This motion followed.

The court may, in its discretion and after notice to the adverse party, allow, upon any terms as may be just, an amendment to any pleading, including adding or striking out the name of any party, or correcting a mistake in the name of a party, or a mistake in any other respect. (Code Civ. Proc., § 473, subd. (a)(1).) “The court may deem a motion to file an amendment to a pleading to be a motion to file an amended pleading and require the filing of the entire previous pleading with the approved amendments incorporated into it.” (CRC 3.1324, subd. (c).)

Here, given the parties’ extensive difficulties in identifying and naming the correct defendant, the Court will require the filing of a Second Amended Complaint that includes the name of the correct defendant (State Farm General) and removes State Farm Mutual as well as “State Farm” as a collective reference from the pleading.  This appears to be the best method for maintaining an orderly record showing the proper parties to this action.

Accordingly, the Court continues the hearing to __________ so that Plaintiffs may submit a proposed Second Amended Complaint which incorporates the requested amendments. The proposed pleading must be filed no later than 5 court days before the date of the hearing.

Moving party to give notice.

Dated this 10th day of December 2024

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.