THOMAS PORTUGAL VS. HIGH 5 ENTERTAINMENT, LLC

Matter on the Law & Motion/Discovery Calendar for Thursday, August 14, 2025, line 12, 3 - DEFENDANT HIGH 5 ENTERTAINMENT, LLC'S MOTION TO STRIKE Amended COMPLAINT

Defendant High 5 Entertainment, LLC moves to strike from Plaintiff Thomas Portugal's First Amended Complaint Paragraphs 3-7, 48-49, and 64-67, and Exhibits 1, 2, 3, and 5 as false or unessential to the claims. The court denies the motion.

Pleadings are given a liberal construction, and the UCL is a very broad statute. The term "unfair," in particular, has been defined to include a practice that "offends an established public policy or when the practice is immoral, unethical, oppressive, unscrupulous or substantially injurious" to consumers, as well as a practice that results in substantial consumer injury that "is not outweighed by any countervailing benefits to consumers or to competition, and is not an injury the consumers themselves could reasonably have avoided." (Moran v. Prime Healthcare Management, Inc. (2016) 3 Cal.App.5th 1131, 1150 [citation simplified].) That other states have banned High 5's business model, or that the business model is related to one that is concededly illegal, are matters that are related to whether the practice is unfair under that broad definition.

For the 9:00 a.m. calendar, all attorneys and parties may appear in Department 301 remotely or in person. Remote hearings will be conducted by videoconference using Zoom. (Dept. 301 Zoom ID 161 502 4290; Passcode 700956.) 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 contestdept301tr@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.

Counsel for the prevailing party is required to prepare a proposed order which repeats verbatim the substantive portion of the tentative ruling and must email it to contestdept301tr@sftc.org prior to the hearing even if the tentative ruling is not contested.

The court no longer provides a court reporter in the Law & Motion or Discovery 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/CVA) | |