Gonsalves v. Fed. Nat. Mortgage Assn. CA3

Filed 10/28/14 Gonsalves v. Fed. Nat. Mortgage Assn. CA3 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 8.1115(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA THIRD APPELLATE DISTRICT (Tehama) ---- FREDERICK C. GONSALVES, C073101

Plaintiff and Appellant, (Super. Ct. No. CI66327)

v.

FEDERAL NATIONAL MORTGAGE ASSOCIATION et al.,

Defendants and Respondents.

Plaintiff Frederick C. Gonsalves appeals from an order of dismissal following the sustaining of a demurrer without leave to amend. Because Gonsalves has shown no error, we affirm. PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND In March 2012, Gonsalves filed a complaint that alleged a single cause of action to quiet title to certain real property. The only cause of action shown in the caption of the complaint was “Quiet Title,” the only heading in the body of the complaint was

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“Complaint to Quiet Title (Adverse Possession),” and the only allegations in the complaint “were with regard to quiet title via adverse possession.”1 Defendants Federal National Mortgage Association and Bank of America, N.A. demurred to the complaint, and the trial court sustained the demurrer with leave to amend, “finding that [Gonsalves] had not alleged tender or tendered the full amount owed [on the property], nor had [he] stated a cause of action for quiet title based upon adverse possession.” In August 2012, Gonsalves filed a first amended complaint that, in its caption, added 12 new causes of action, including negligence, fraud, breach of contract, unjust enrichment, and slander of title (among others). Defendants demurred to the amended complaint. Noting that Gonsalves had not obtained leave of court to add any new causes of action to his complaint, the trial court sustained the demurrer to the 12 new causes of action without leave to amend based on the authority of Harris v. Wachovia Mortgage, FSB (2010) 185 Cal.App.4th 1018. Presumably out of an abundance of caution, the trial court also addressed each of the new causes of action separately and determined that Gonsalves had not stated any valid cause of action on any of the new legal theories nor shown how his complaint could be amended to do so. With respect to the quiet title cause of action, the trial court concluded that Gonsalves had still not alleged “valid tender or offer and ability to tender” and still had not adequately alleged a cause of action to quiet title based on adverse possession. The court further concluded that Gonsalves had not shown how the defects could be cured by amendment. On that basis, the trial court sustained the demurrer without leave to amend with respect to the quiet title cause of action as well and entered an order of dismissal.