Law & Motion Calendar

CourtCall is not permitted for this calendar.

If the tentative ruling does not require appearances, and is accepted, no appearance is necessary. 

Any party who wishes to be heard in response or opposition to the Court’s tentative ruling MUST NOTIFY the Court’s Judicial Assistant by telephone at (707) 521-6602 and MUST NOTIFY all other parties of the intent to appear, and whether they will appear in person or by Zoom. Both notifications must be completed no later than 4:00 p.m. on the court (business) day immediately before the day of the hearing.

Unless notification of an appearance has been given as provided above, the tentative ruling shall become the ruling of the court the day of the hearing at the beginning of the calendar. 

TO JOIN “ZOOM” ONLINE,

• D18 -https://sonomacourt-org.zoomgov.com/j/1607394368?pwd=aW1JTWlIL3NBeE9LVHU2NVVpQlVRUT09
• Meeting ID: 160—739—4368
• Password: 000169
• OR CLICK HERE

To Join Department 18 “Zoom” By Phone:

• Call: +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
• Enter Meeting ID: 160-739-4368
• And Password: 000169

Guide for Participating in Court Proceedings via Zoom for Dept 18:

• After joining the meeting and checking in with the clerk, please mute your audio when not speaking. This helps keep background noise to a minimum.
• Be mindful of background noise when your microphone is not muted. Avoid activities that could create additional noise, such as shuffling papers.
• Position your camera properly if you choose to use a web camera. Be sure it is in a stable position and focused at eye level, if possible. Make sure everything visible in the frame is appropriate for an appearance in court.
• If a confidential session becomes necessary it is incumbent on you to ensure you are able to participate from a private location so that unauthorized people cannot overhear or see the proceedings.
• Chat is enabled for the sharing of documents among participants and the court and to allow attorneys to communicate individually with each other or their clients only. No chat messages should be sent privately to the court as it would amount to an unauthorized ex parte communication. Neither should chat messages be sent to all participants unless directed by the court.
• The recording function has been disabled. Remember, the prohibition against recording court proceedings, even remote ones, remains.
• Be patient. Check in will take more time and the experience from those who have tried this before is that proceedings are a little slower generally.

1-2. SCV-264911, Bella Commercial, LLC v. Pacific Specialty Insurance Company

            Plaintiff’s motion to re-open discovery and for sanctions is DENIED. Defendant’s request for sanctions against Plaintiff is DENIED.

CCP § 2023.050(c) provides:

The court shall impose a monetary sanction…against any party, person, or attorney who unsuccessfully makes or opposes a motion to extend or to reopen discovery, unless it finds that the one subject to the sanction acted with substantial justification or that other circumstances make the imposition of the sanction unjust.

Plaintiff’s counsel shall submit a written order consistent with this tentative ruling and in compliance with Rule 3.1312.

The issues raised by Plaintiff can be resolved through motions in limine. In fact, Plaintiff has a pending motion in limine to exclude the testimony of the witness whose deposition Plaintiff seeks to re-open discovery for. Furthermore, this Court has already denied a previous request to re-open discovery made by Defendant Quantum Mechanical. Plaintiff opposed that motion. The Court refers the parties to the June 28, 2023, order denying Quantum Mechanical’s motion in which the Court stated, “Without a stipulation of the parties, the Court does not intend to revisit discovery outside of a motion in limine to exclude specific evidence.” The same is true now. The Court will not impose sanctions because the Court did not impose sanction against Quantum Mechanical as part of the July 11, 2023, discovery motion.  The Court believes it would be unjust to now impose sanctions against Plaintiff.

3-4. SCV-270512, Farris v. ME Northern Bay LLC

Appearances required. This matter has been continued twice to allow the parties time to reach a stipulation regarding the Bel-Air West Notice procedure. In the Court’s most recent minute order, the Court ordered the parties to inform the Court by September 20, 2023, if the parties were able to reach an agreement. Neither party has updated the Court. For this reason, appearances are required.