David Egge v. General Motors, LLC

(Pomona Courthouse South: Dept. O) August 31, 2026 DEPARTMENT O LAW AND MOTION RULINGS The Court may change tentative rulings at any time. Therefore, attorneys are advised to check this website to determine if any changes or updates have been made to the tentative ruling. Counsel may submit on the tentative rulings by calling the clerk in Dept. O at 909-802-1126 before 8:30 the morning of the hearing. Submission on the tentative does not bind the court to adopt the tentative ruling at the hearing should the opposing party appear and convince the court of further modification during oral argument. The Tentative Ruling is not an invitation, nor an opportunity, to file any further documents relative to the hearing in question. No such filing will be considered by the Court in the absence of permission first obtained following ex-parte application therefore.

DEFENDANT GENERAL MOTORS LLC'S MOTION FOR COMPLIANCE PURSUANT TO C.C.P. Sec. 871.26; AND REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS is MOOT re compelling deposition since that occurred on 8/5 but GRANTED as to sanctions because Plaintiff did not meet and confer until after the filing of the motion.

Background

This is a lemon law case. On September 23, 2025, Plaintiff David Egge filed suit against Defendant General Motors, LLC. On March 4, 2026, this court sustained Defendant's demurrer with a motion to strike. On April 16, 2026, Defendant filed its answer. On June 8, 2026, the instant motion was filed. On August 3, 2026, an opposition was filed. On August 24, 2026, a reply was filed.

Discussion

Defendant moves this Court for an order for compliance requiring Plaintiff to appear and comply with the initial deposition of the Plaintiff under Code of Civil Procedure section 871.26, subdivision (c)(1). After a review of the papers, that request is moot as Plaintiff's deposition was taken on August 5, 2026. That said, in reply, Defendant maintains that sanctions of $1,500 are warranted/required because Plaintiff repeatedly failed to comply with section 871.26. (Reply p. 1.) The following timeline, gathered from papers and declarations, readily resolves the issue in favor of Defendant:

- The statutory deadline to conduct the deposition of Plaintiff was May 15, 2026.

- As part of the responsive pleading e-mail, GM attached a Notice of Deposition, for Plaintiff to appear for deposition on March 25, 2026.

- Plaintiff timely served a written objection on March 19, 2026, expressly stating that Plaintiff would meet and confer to reschedule the deposition to a mutually convenient date. (Smith Decl. P. 5.) (According to Defendant, Plaintiff's firm has canceled over 510 Plaintiff's depositions since January 2026.)

- Plaintiff did not meet and confer to reschedule a deposition.

- On May 6, 2026, counsel for GM sent a follow-up e-mail to Plaintiff's counsel requesting dates for Plaintiff's availability for deposition.

- As of the filing of the motion on 6/8, no response was received. (Motion p. 6:4-5; Stark Decl., P.8.)

- One month later, on July 8, Plaintiff requested to schedule the deposition between August 3, 2026 and August 5, 2026. (Stark Decl., P.7.)

- On July 8, 2026, GM replied and accepted the date of August 5, 2026. On July 16, 2026, GM served notice.

Accordingly, while Plaintiff maintains that they " kept th[e] commitment" of meeting and conferring, not so. Instead, the timeline demonstrates is that since objecting to the March 25, 2026, deposition, Plaintiff's counsel did not make any attempts to reschedule until faced with GM's motion for compliance. Consequently, absent "good cause," the court must award monetary sanctions in the amount of $1,500.00 against Plaintiff's counsel Strategic Legal Practices, APC which is to be paid within 15 business days pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure section 871.26, subdivision (j)(2).

Conclusion

Based on the foregoing, the motion is moot re: compelling the deposition and granted re: sanctions in the amount of $1,500. | Home -->