HRVC CONSTRUCTION, INC. VS. ELLEN SOULIS ET AL

Set for Law and Motion/Discovery Calendar on Monday, May 11, 2026, Line 7. 2 - Defendants Elle Soulis and Dan Sinton's Motion to Strike is OFF CALENDAR.

A party moving to strike a pleading or a part of a pleading must meet and confer with the party who filed the pleading "[b]efore filing [the] motion." (Code of Civil Procedure section 435.5(a).) The meeting must be "in person, by telephone or by video conference." (Ibid.) The meeting must take place at least five days before the date the motion must be filed. (Code of Civil Procedure section 435.5(a)(2.) The moving party must file a declaration with its moving papers demonstrating compliance with these requirements and/or that the opposing party failed to confer in good faith. (Code of Civil Procedure section 435.5(3).)

The Shahinfar declaration documents email correspondence. (See Shahinfar Decl. paras. 17.) Defendants did not establish the parties met "in person, by telephone or by video conference." Nor did they establish Plaintiff "failed to respond to the meet and confer request of the demurring party or otherwise failed to meet and confer in good faith." Conferences regarding earlier iterations of the complaint do not excuse the parties from meeting and conferring regarding the instant complaint. Plaintiff having failed to demonstrate compliance with section 435.5, the motion is ordered off calendar.

The parties are reminded that the duty to meet and confer is a duty to make reasonable and good faith efforts to resolve disputes before bringing them to the court's attention. The record in this action demonstrates all parties are not honoring their duties.

Defendants must lodge a proposed order that includes the above text no later than 8:30 am on April 17, 2026. Plaintiff shall send the proposed order by email to contestdept302tr@sftc.org.

For the 9:00 a.m. calendar, all attorneys and parties may appear in Department 302 remotely or in person. Remote hearings will be conducted by videoconference using Zoom. (Dept. 302 Zoom ID 160 409 7690; Passcode 516287.) To appear remotely at the hearing, go to the court's website at sfsuperiorcourt.org under "Online Services," navigate to "Tentative Rulings," and click on the appropriate link, or dial the corresponding phone number.

Any party who contests a tentative ruling must send an email to contestdept302tr@sftc.org with a copy to all other parties by 4pm stating, without argument, the portion(s) of the tentative ruling that the party contests. The subject line of the email shall include the line number, case name and case number. The text of the email shall include the name and contact information, including email address, of the attorney or party who will appear at the hearing.

The court no longer provides a court reporter in the Law & Motion Department. Parties may retain their own reporter, who may appear in the courtroom or remotely. A retained reporter must be a California certified court reporter (CSR), for only a CSR's transcript may be used in California courts. If a CSR is being retained, include in your email all of the following: their name, CSR and telephone numbers, and their individual work email address. =(302/JMQ) | |