Beverly Union Co. v. Superior Court

Opinion

ROTH, P. J.

On January 1, 1988, the Superior Court of Los Angeles County began operation of its pilot project mandated by the Trial Court Delay Reduction Act of 1986 (Gov. Code, § 68600 et seq.), under local rules of court promulgated under authority conferred by statute. (Gov. Code, § 68612.) Petitioner’s Code of Civil Procedure section 170.6 challenge to the pilot project judge was stricken as untimely under these local rules. Petitioner seeks a writ, contending it was unaware the action had been assigned to the pilot project because the trial court had not sent it notice of the assignment.

1

Petitioner commenced the action in the superior court by filing a complaint on August 13, 1982. The action was docketed as No. C 421635. Defendants cross-complained against petitioner on December 17, 1982.

On or about October 15, 1987, the Superior Court of Los Angeles County published rules of court implementing the exemplary delay reduction program mandated by the act. The court also announced the assignment to this

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pilot project of all odd-numbered cases pending in the central district. Twenty-five judges were named as pilot project judges, with designated groups of cases assigned to each judge. Cases with docket numbers ending in 35 were designated for assignment to the Honorable Stephen M. Lachs, sitting in Department 33.

This assignment took effect on January 1, 1988. (Gov. Code, § 68609, subd. (a).) On July 14, 1988, petitioner filed a motion for an order specially setting the action for trial. Petitioner filed this motion in Department 1, rather than in Judge Lachs’s department, in violation of pilot project rule 1106.1.5.

2

Petitioner set its motion for hearing on July 29. On July 27, petitioner’s counsel learned for the first time that the motion would be heard in Department 33, not Department 1. On July 28, he examined a local newspaper to see which judge sits in Department 33. On July 29, a few minutes before the hearing on its motion for special trial setting, petitioner filed its section 170.6 peremptory challenge to Judge Lachs.