Judge: William A. Crowfoot, Case: BC692559, Date: 2022-12-20 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: BC692559    Hearing Date: December 20, 2022    Dept: 27

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

FOR THE COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES - CENTRAL DISTRICT

 

JALEEL MELENDEZ,

                   Plaintiff(s),

          vs.

 

PINETREE TERRACE APARTMENTS, et al.,

 

                   Defendant(s).

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      CASE NO.: BC692559

 

[TENTATIVE] ORDER RE: MOTION TO DEEM REQUEST FOR ADMISSIONS ADMITTED.   

 

Dept. 27

1:30 p.m.

December 20, 2022

 

On February 1, 2018, plaintiff Jaleel Melendez (“Plaintiff”) filed this action against defendants Pinetree Terrace Apartments and Mabry Management Co., Inc. (collectively, “Defendants”) for injuries arising from a slip and fall. Plaintiff alleges that on June 12, 2017, he slipped and fell on a liquid substance on the common area staircase.  On August 24, 2022, Defendant served Requests for Admissions (Set One) on Plaintiff.  Plaintiff did not serve responses and Defendants filed this motion on August 24, 2022.

Where a party fails to timely respond to a request for admission, 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.  (Code Civ. Proc., § 2033.280, subd. (b).)  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 Civ. Proc., § 2033.280, subd. (c).)

Plaintiff did not oppose this motion and it is undisputed that he did not serve responses to Defendants’ requests for admission.  Additionally, it does not appear that he has served substantially compliant responses before the date of this hearing.  Accordingly, Defendants’ motion is GRANTED.

Where a party fails to provide a timely response to requests for admission, “[i]t is mandatory that the court impose a monetary sanction under Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 2023.010) on the party or attorney, or both, whose failure to serve a timely response to requests for admission necessitated this motion.”  (Code Civ. Proc., § 2033.280, subd. (c).)

          Defendants’ request for sanctions is GRANTED and imposed upon Plaintiff in the amount of $235, consisting of 1 hour at defense counsel’s hourly rate of $175 and $60 in filing fees, to be paid within 20 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.