Hill-Tellman v. Musicians' Union

LANGDON, P. J.

This is an appeal by the plaintiff from a judgment against her after a demurrer had been sustained to her petition for a writ of review, without leave to amend. Plaintiff sought to have a writ of review issue from the superior court of the state of California, in and for the city and county of San Francisco, directed to the defendants, Musicians’ Union of San Francisco, an unincorporated volunteer association, and certain of its officers, for the purpose of inquiring into the action of defendants in imposing a fine upon plaintiff. She alleged that the fine was imposed after her resignation from the Musicians’ Union, but does not seek reinstatement therein nor claim to be a member of such Union. She prayed that the judgment and penalty imposed upon her by said defendants be vacated and annulled.

[280]

Defendant demurred and moved to quash the alternative writ issued at the time of the filing of the petition. The demurrer was sustained and the motion granted and judgment for costs entered in favor of the defendants.

The action of the trial court was based upon the ground that writs of review issue only to governmental bodies and not to voluntary unincorporated associations such as the Musicians’ Union. No authority is cited by the appellant to contradict this holding, and, as pointed out by the learned trial court, the cases relied upon deal with boards or officers acting as public agents and invested by law with judicial or q-itasi-judicial authority in the administration of the business of the state or a political subdivision thereof. No case has been cited which authorizes a writ of

certiorari

when complaint is made of the action of a private association such as the organization involved here. We disagree with appellant in her contention that this fact is without significance in the absence of a direct holding in the state denying the writ under such circumstances. We think the absence of any instance in this state or elsewhere of the issuance of this writ against a nongovernmental body indicates that the writ is not the proper remedy in such situations. In the case of

Whitehead

v.