Preview
KATHRYN A. STEBNER (SB #121088)
1 KARMAN GUADAGNI (SB #267631)
DEENA ZACHARIN (SB #141249)
2 KELSEY CRAVEN (SB #337179)
BRIAN UMPIERRE (SB #236399)
3 STEBNER GERTLER GAUDAGNI & KAWAMOTO
A PROFESSIONAL LAW CORPORATION
4 870 Market Street, Suite 1285
San Francisco, CA 94102
5 Tel: (415) 362-9800
Fax: (415) 362-9801
6
KIRSTEN FISH (SB #217940)
7 NEEDHAM KEPNER & FISH LLP
1960 The Alameda, Suite 210
8 San Jose, CA 95126
Tel: (408) 244-2166
9 Fax: (408) 244-7815
10 Attorneys for Plaintiffs
11 IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
12 FOR THE COUNTY OF KERN
13 BILLY CATES, Individually and as Case No. BCV-22-102864
Successor-In-Interest to the Estate of
14 LOIS CATES; BARBARA NEWTON, MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND
Individually; and PAUL CATES, AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF
15 Individually, PLAINTIFFS’ EX PARTE APPLICATION FOR
ORDER SHORTENING TIME ON HEARING
16 Plaintiffs, FOR PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION TO COMPEL
ATTENDANCE AT DEPOSITIONS;
17 vs. REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS
18 THE VILLAGE AT SEVEN OAKS AL
MC, LLC dba THE VILLAGE AT Date: November 29, 2023
19 SEVEN OAKS ASSISTED LIVING Time: 8:30 a.m.
AND MEMORY CARE; SEVEN OAKS Dept. 17
20 AL & MC; FRONTIER Judge: Hon. Thomas S. Clark
MANAGEMENT LLC; FRONTIER
21 SENIOR LIVING, LLC; SAMANTHA Complaint filed: October 26, 2022
DAVIDSON; and DOES 1-50, Inclusive, FAC filed: January 18, 2023
22 Preferential Trial Date: January 8, 2024
Defendants.
23 JURY TRIAL DEMANDED
24
25
26
27
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MPA ISO PLTFS’ EX PARTE APP FOR OST ON HEARING FOR PLTFS’ MTC ATTENDANCE AT
DEPOSITIONS; REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS
1 INTRODUCTION
2 Plaintiffs apply ex parte to this Court for an order shortening time to hear Plaintiffs’ Motion
3 to Compel Attendance at Depositions; Request for Sanctions (“Motion to Compel”). Plaintiffs filed
4 their Complaint in the above-captioned matter on October 26, 2022 and filed their First Amended
5 Complaint on January 18, 2023. All parties to this action have been served with the First Amended
6 Complaint. (Declaration of Kelsey Craven in Support of Plaintiffs’ Ex Parte Application for Order
7 Shortening Time on Plaintiffs’ Motion to Compel [“Craven Decl.”], ¶ 3.)
8 Plaintiffs filed their Motion to Compel and supporting documents on November 27, 2023
9 and the Motion to Compel was assigned a hearing date of January 3, 2024. All parties to this action
10 have been served with Plaintiffs’ Motion to Compel and supporting documents. This matter has
11 been set for preferential trial commencing on January 8, 2024 and discovery deadlines are fast
12 approaching, including the non-expert discovery cutoff on December 11, 2023 and the non-expert
13 discovery motion cutoff on December 26, 2023. (Id., ¶¶ 4-6.)
14 On November 28, 2023, all parties to this action were notified that Plaintiffs’ attorneys
15 would be making this ex parte application to hear their Motion to Compel on shortened time and
16 that the ex parte application would be made on November 29, 2023 at 8:30 a.m. in Department 17.
17 (Id., ¶ 8.)
18 GOOD CAUSE EXISTS TO GRANT THIS EX PARTE APPLICATION
FOR AN ORDER SHORTENING TIME
19
20 Good cause exists to grant this Ex Parte Application for an Order Shortening Time for
21 Hearing on Plaintiffs’ Motion to Compel to prevent prejudicing Plaintiffs’ interest in this litigation
22 due to Defendants’ failure to timely, and in good faith, comply with the discovery process. This ex
23 parte application is made on the grounds that the ongoing failure and/or refusal by Defendants to
24 produce relevant deponents noticed by Plaintiffs justifies Plaintiffs’ need to file an ex parte
25 application for an order shortening time in order for the Court to order Defendants to comply with
26 their obligations under the discovery statute. (Id., ¶ 7.)
27 This matter is set for preferential trial commencing January 8, 2024, and the discovery
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MPA ISO PLTFS’ EX PARTE APP FOR OST ON HEARING FOR PLTFS’ MTC ATTENDANCE AT
DEPOSITIONS; REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS
1 sought by Plaintiffs’ Motion to Compel is essential for Plaintiffs’ preparation for trial. This ex parte
2 application is being timely sought after numerous attempts to meet and confer with Defendants’
3 counsel to resolve these issues informally. (Id.)
4 The hearing for Plaintiffs’ Motion to Compel have been scheduled for January 3, 2024 at
5 8:30 A.M. in Department 17. The current hearing date of January 3, 2024 for Plaintiffs’ Motion to
6 Compel is twenty-three (23) days after the non-expert discovery cutoff on December 11, 2023, eight
7 (8) days after the non-expert discovery motion cutoff on December 26, 2023, and five (5) days
8 before trial begins in this matter on January 8, 2024. (Id., ¶¶ 5-6.) This timeline makes subsequent
9 intervention by the Court impossible if an issue arises regarding any discovery which may be
10 compelled under Plaintiffs’ motion.
11 Further, the relief sought herein will not cause undue prejudice to Defendants. As set forth in
12 the concurrently filed Declaration of Kelsey Craven, all parties have been provided with timely and
13 adequate notice of this Ex Parte Application in accordance with California Rule of Court, Rule
14 3.1203. (Id., ¶¶ 7-8.)
15 CONCLUSION
16 Wherefore, Plaintiffs respectfully request that this Court grant this ex parte application for
17 an order shortening time for hearing on Plaintiffs’ Motion to Compel.
18 Respectfully submitted,
19 DATED: November 28, 2023 STEBNER GERTLER GUADAGNI & KAWAMOTO
20
21
By:
22 Kathryn A. Stebner
Karman Guadagni
23 Deena K. Zacharin
Kelsey Craven
24 Brian Umpierre
Attorneys for Plaintiffs
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MPA ISO PLTFS’ EX PARTE APP FOR OST ON HEARING FOR PLTFS’ MTC ATTENDANCE AT
DEPOSITIONS; REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS
Billy Cates, et al. v. The Village at Seven Oaks AL MC, LLC, dba, et al.
1 Kern County Superior Court, Case No. BCV-22-102864
2 PROOF OF SERVICE
3 I, the undersigned, declare:
4 I am a citizen of the United States of America, am over the age of eighteen (18) years, and not a
party to the within action. I am an employee of Stebner Gertler Guadagni & Kawamoto, and my
5 business address is 870 Market Street, Suite 1285, San Francisco, California 94102. On the date below,
I caused to be served the following documents:
6
MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF PLAINTIFFS’ EX
7 PARTE APPLICATION FOR ORDER SHORTENING TIME ON HEARING FOR
PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION TO COMPEL ATTENDANCE AT DEPOSITIONS; REQUEST FOR
8 SANCTIONS
9 on the parties involved, addressed as follows:
Kirsten Fish William C. Wilson
10 NEEDHAM, KEPNER & FISH LLP Nicholas Prukop
1960 The Alameda, Suite 210 WILSON GETTY LLP
11 San Jose, CA 95126 12555 High Bluff Drive, Suite 270
Phone: (408) 261-4226 San Diego, California 92130
12 Fax: (408) 244-7815 Telephone: 858.847.3237; Facsimile: 858.847.3365
E-mail: kfish@nkf-law.com Email: bwilson@wilsongetty.com
13 Email: nprukop@wilsongetty.com
Co-Counsel for Plaintiffs Email: jwillard@wilsongetty.com
14 Email: jmartinez@wilongetty.com
15 Attorneys For Defendants THE VILLAGE AT
SEVEN OAKS AL MC, LLC Dba THE VILLAGE AT
16 SEVEN OAKS ASSISTED LIVING AND MEMORY
CARE; SEVEN OAK ASSISTED LIVING AND
17 MEMORY CARE LLC (Erroneously Sued And
Served As SEVEN OAKS AL & MC); FRONTIER
18 MANAGEMENT LLC, FRONTIER SENIOR
LIVING, LLC And SAMANTHA DAVIDSON
19
X BY ELECTRONIC SERVICE: I electronically filed the document(s) listed above with
20 the Clerk of the Court by using the Court’s approved E-filing provider, One Legal, and
caused a copy of said document(s) to be E-Served through One Legal to the persons at the e-
21 mail address(es) listed above on this date. No electronic message or other indication that the
transmission was unsuccessful was received within a reasonable time after the transmission.
22
BY EMAIL/ELECTRONIC SUBMISSION: Only by e-mailing the document(s) listed
23 above to the persons at the e-mail address(es) listed on this date pursuant to Code of Civil
Procedure § 1010.6 and California Rules of Court Rule 2.251. No electronic message or
24 other indication that the transmission was unsuccessful was received within a reasonable
time after the submission.
25 I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of California that the foregoing is
true and correct. Executed at San Francisco, California on November 28, 2023.
26
27
28 Ann Williams
1 PROOF OF SERVICE
Preview
KATHRYN A. STEBNER (SB #121088) 1 KARMAN GUADAGNI (SB #267631) DEENA ZACHARIN (SB #141249) 2 KELSEY CRAVEN (SB #337179) BRIAN UMPIERRE (SB #236399) 3 STEBNER GERTLER GAUDAGNI & KAWAMOTO A PROFESSIONAL LAW CORPORATION 4 870 Market Street, Suite 1285 San Francisco, CA 94102 5 Tel: (415) 362-9800 Fax: (415) 362-9801 6 KIRSTEN FISH (SB #217940) 7 NEEDHAM KEPNER & FISH LLP 1960 The Alameda, Suite 210 8 San Jose, CA 95126 Tel: (408) 244-2166 9 Fax: (408) 244-7815 10 Attorneys for Plaintiffs 11 IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA 12 FOR THE COUNTY OF KERN 13 BILLY CATES, Individually and as Case No. BCV-22-102864 Successor-In-Interest to the Estate of 14 LOIS CATES; BARBARA NEWTON, MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND Individually; and PAUL CATES, AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF 15 Individually, PLAINTIFFS’ EX PARTE APPLICATION FOR ORDER SHORTENING TIME ON HEARING 16 Plaintiffs, FOR PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION TO COMPEL ATTENDANCE AT DEPOSITIONS; 17 vs. REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS 18 THE VILLAGE AT SEVEN OAKS AL MC, LLC dba THE VILLAGE AT Date: November 29, 2023 19 SEVEN OAKS ASSISTED LIVING Time: 8:30 a.m. AND MEMORY CARE; SEVEN OAKS Dept. 17 20 AL & MC; FRONTIER Judge: Hon. Thomas S. Clark MANAGEMENT LLC; FRONTIER 21 SENIOR LIVING, LLC; SAMANTHA Complaint filed: October 26, 2022 DAVIDSON; and DOES 1-50, Inclusive, FAC filed: January 18, 2023 22 Preferential Trial Date: January 8, 2024 Defendants. 23 JURY TRIAL DEMANDED 24 25 26 27 -1- MPA ISO PLTFS’ EX PARTE APP FOR OST ON HEARING FOR PLTFS’ MTC ATTENDANCE AT DEPOSITIONS; REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS 1 INTRODUCTION 2 Plaintiffs apply ex parte to this Court for an order shortening time to hear Plaintiffs’ Motion 3 to Compel Attendance at Depositions; Request for Sanctions (“Motion to Compel”). Plaintiffs filed 4 their Complaint in the above-captioned matter on October 26, 2022 and filed their First Amended 5 Complaint on January 18, 2023. All parties to this action have been served with the First Amended 6 Complaint. (Declaration of Kelsey Craven in Support of Plaintiffs’ Ex Parte Application for Order 7 Shortening Time on Plaintiffs’ Motion to Compel [“Craven Decl.”], ¶ 3.) 8 Plaintiffs filed their Motion to Compel and supporting documents on November 27, 2023 9 and the Motion to Compel was assigned a hearing date of January 3, 2024. All parties to this action 10 have been served with Plaintiffs’ Motion to Compel and supporting documents. This matter has 11 been set for preferential trial commencing on January 8, 2024 and discovery deadlines are fast 12 approaching, including the non-expert discovery cutoff on December 11, 2023 and the non-expert 13 discovery motion cutoff on December 26, 2023. (Id., ¶¶ 4-6.) 14 On November 28, 2023, all parties to this action were notified that Plaintiffs’ attorneys 15 would be making this ex parte application to hear their Motion to Compel on shortened time and 16 that the ex parte application would be made on November 29, 2023 at 8:30 a.m. in Department 17. 17 (Id., ¶ 8.) 18 GOOD CAUSE EXISTS TO GRANT THIS EX PARTE APPLICATION FOR AN ORDER SHORTENING TIME 19 20 Good cause exists to grant this Ex Parte Application for an Order Shortening Time for 21 Hearing on Plaintiffs’ Motion to Compel to prevent prejudicing Plaintiffs’ interest in this litigation 22 due to Defendants’ failure to timely, and in good faith, comply with the discovery process. This ex 23 parte application is made on the grounds that the ongoing failure and/or refusal by Defendants to 24 produce relevant deponents noticed by Plaintiffs justifies Plaintiffs’ need to file an ex parte 25 application for an order shortening time in order for the Court to order Defendants to comply with 26 their obligations under the discovery statute. (Id., ¶ 7.) 27 This matter is set for preferential trial commencing January 8, 2024, and the discovery -2- MPA ISO PLTFS’ EX PARTE APP FOR OST ON HEARING FOR PLTFS’ MTC ATTENDANCE AT DEPOSITIONS; REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS 1 sought by Plaintiffs’ Motion to Compel is essential for Plaintiffs’ preparation for trial. This ex parte 2 application is being timely sought after numerous attempts to meet and confer with Defendants’ 3 counsel to resolve these issues informally. (Id.) 4 The hearing for Plaintiffs’ Motion to Compel have been scheduled for January 3, 2024 at 5 8:30 A.M. in Department 17. The current hearing date of January 3, 2024 for Plaintiffs’ Motion to 6 Compel is twenty-three (23) days after the non-expert discovery cutoff on December 11, 2023, eight 7 (8) days after the non-expert discovery motion cutoff on December 26, 2023, and five (5) days 8 before trial begins in this matter on January 8, 2024. (Id., ¶¶ 5-6.) This timeline makes subsequent 9 intervention by the Court impossible if an issue arises regarding any discovery which may be 10 compelled under Plaintiffs’ motion. 11 Further, the relief sought herein will not cause undue prejudice to Defendants. As set forth in 12 the concurrently filed Declaration of Kelsey Craven, all parties have been provided with timely and 13 adequate notice of this Ex Parte Application in accordance with California Rule of Court, Rule 14 3.1203. (Id., ¶¶ 7-8.) 15 CONCLUSION 16 Wherefore, Plaintiffs respectfully request that this Court grant this ex parte application for 17 an order shortening time for hearing on Plaintiffs’ Motion to Compel. 18 Respectfully submitted, 19 DATED: November 28, 2023 STEBNER GERTLER GUADAGNI & KAWAMOTO 20 21 By: 22 Kathryn A. Stebner Karman Guadagni 23 Deena K. Zacharin Kelsey Craven 24 Brian Umpierre Attorneys for Plaintiffs 25 26 27 -3- MPA ISO PLTFS’ EX PARTE APP FOR OST ON HEARING FOR PLTFS’ MTC ATTENDANCE AT DEPOSITIONS; REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS Billy Cates, et al. v. The Village at Seven Oaks AL MC, LLC, dba, et al. 1 Kern County Superior Court, Case No. BCV-22-102864 2 PROOF OF SERVICE 3 I, the undersigned, declare: 4 I am a citizen of the United States of America, am over the age of eighteen (18) years, and not a party to the within action. I am an employee of Stebner Gertler Guadagni & Kawamoto, and my 5 business address is 870 Market Street, Suite 1285, San Francisco, California 94102. On the date below, I caused to be served the following documents: 6 MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF PLAINTIFFS’ EX 7 PARTE APPLICATION FOR ORDER SHORTENING TIME ON HEARING FOR PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION TO COMPEL ATTENDANCE AT DEPOSITIONS; REQUEST FOR 8 SANCTIONS 9 on the parties involved, addressed as follows: Kirsten Fish William C. Wilson 10 NEEDHAM, KEPNER & FISH LLP Nicholas Prukop 1960 The Alameda, Suite 210 WILSON GETTY LLP 11 San Jose, CA 95126 12555 High Bluff Drive, Suite 270 Phone: (408) 261-4226 San Diego, California 92130 12 Fax: (408) 244-7815 Telephone: 858.847.3237; Facsimile: 858.847.3365 E-mail: kfish@nkf-law.com Email: bwilson@wilsongetty.com 13 Email: nprukop@wilsongetty.com Co-Counsel for Plaintiffs Email: jwillard@wilsongetty.com 14 Email: jmartinez@wilongetty.com 15 Attorneys For Defendants THE VILLAGE AT SEVEN OAKS AL MC, LLC Dba THE VILLAGE AT 16 SEVEN OAKS ASSISTED LIVING AND MEMORY CARE; SEVEN OAK ASSISTED LIVING AND 17 MEMORY CARE LLC (Erroneously Sued And Served As SEVEN OAKS AL & MC); FRONTIER 18 MANAGEMENT LLC, FRONTIER SENIOR LIVING, LLC And SAMANTHA DAVIDSON 19 X BY ELECTRONIC SERVICE: I electronically filed the document(s) listed above with 20 the Clerk of the Court by using the Court’s approved E-filing provider, One Legal, and caused a copy of said document(s) to be E-Served through One Legal to the persons at the e- 21 mail address(es) listed above on this date. No electronic message or other indication that the transmission was unsuccessful was received within a reasonable time after the transmission. 22 BY EMAIL/ELECTRONIC SUBMISSION: Only by e-mailing the document(s) listed 23 above to the persons at the e-mail address(es) listed on this date pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure § 1010.6 and California Rules of Court Rule 2.251. No electronic message or 24 other indication that the transmission was unsuccessful was received within a reasonable time after the submission. 25 I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of California that the foregoing is true and correct. Executed at San Francisco, California on November 28, 2023. 26 27 28 Ann Williams 1 PROOF OF SERVICE