Garcia v. Daily CA4/3

Filed 4/27/22 Garcia v. Daily CA4/3

NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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

FOURTH APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION THREE

HELEN GARCIA,

Plaintiff and Respondent, G060969

v. (Super. Ct. No. 20CV365883)

LEANNE H. DAILY et al., OPINION

Defendant and Appellant.

Appeal from an order of the Superior Court of Santa Clara County, Sunil R. Kulkarni, Judge. Affirmed. Murphy, Pearson, Bradley & Feeney, Janet L. Everson and Suzie M. Tagliere for Defendants and Appellants. Hovore Law and F. Thomas Hovore for Plaintiff and Respondent. * * *

LeeAnne H. Daily and the Daily and Daily Law Firm appeal from an order denying their special motion to strike Helen Garcia’s complaint pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure section 425.16 (the anti-SLAPP statute). Appellants contend the trial court erred in determining that the anti-SLAPP statue did not apply to Garcia’s claims for legal malpractice and breach of fiduciary duty. The trial court correctly determined the anti- SLAPP statute did not apply to the claims; we affirm. I FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND A. Complaint On March 30, 2020, Garcia filed a complaint against appellants, alleging claims for professional negligence and breach of fiduciary duty. The complaint alleged that in 2015, Garcia filed for divorce from her now ex-husband Anthony Roy Loaiza. By court order, Loaiza was allowed to remain in the community residence, but was solely responsible for all payments to maintain the residence. Defendants LeeAnne H. Daily, a certified family law specialist, and her firm, the Daily and Daily Law Firm, represented Loaiza in the matter. Following settlement discussions in December 2016, the parties entered into a written Stipulation and Order, which was signed by Garcia, Loaiza, Daily, and the settlement officer. The complaint alleged that “the parties and signatories agreed to be bound” by the terms of the Stipulation and Order, which included that the community residence would be sold and the sale proceeds deposited into the trust account of LeeAnne H. Daily and “shall be held in that account until the written agreement of the parties or further order of the Court.” The complaint alleged the community residence was sold on February 7, 2018, but defendants improperly permitted Loaiza to allocate noncommunity debts to reduce the sale proceeds. Furthermore, contrary to the written Stipulation and Order, the sales proceeds were not deposited into Daily’s trust account but entrusted to Loaiza. The