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CCP §437c was amended effective January 1, 2012 to expand availability of a summary adjudication motion permitting, in the interests of judicial economy, summary adjudication of "a legal issue or a claim for damages other than punitive damages that does not completely dispose of a cause of action, an affirmative defense, or an issue of duty." CCP §437c(s). A significant distinguishing feature of the new procedure is that it requires the consent and stipulation of all the parties and the court as a pre-condition for the motion being filed. One side cannot unilaterally file a motion for summary adjudication under CCP §437c(s).
Temporary Procedure: The new summary adjudication procedure expires by its terms after January 1, 2015, unless the Legislature acts to extend it. CCP §437c(u).
Background: The existing statute, CCP §437c(f), was enacted in 1990 at the urging of the California Judges Association, which argued it was a waste of court time to resolve issues in a summary adjudication motion and then reconsider much of the same evidence at trial. CCP §437c(f) changed the procedure to require that it completely dispose of a cause of action, affirmative defense, claim for damages, or issue of duty. In 2011, on behalf of California Defense Counsel, the Legislature reversed itself and added the CCP §437c(s), which allows adjudication of issues that are not dispositive but also requires "a prior determination and order by the court that the motion will further the interests of judicial economy, by reducing the time to be consumed in trial, or significantly increase the ability of the parties to resolve the case by settlement."
Stipulation and Court Order Are Prerequisites to Motion: The moving party must first obtain a court order determining that "the motion will further the interests of judicial economy, by reducing the time to be consumed in trial, or significantly increase the ability of the parties to resolve the case by settlement." CCP §437c(s)(2). The parties submit a joint stipulation clearly setting forth the issues to be adjudicated, "with a declaration from each stipulating party demonstrating that a ruling on the motion will further the interests of judicial economy by reducing the time to be consumed in trial or significantly increasing the probability of settlement." CCP §437c(s)(3). Nonstipulating parties, if any, are served with the joint stipulation and given an opportunity to object.
Timing Requirements: The court has 15 days from receipt of the parties' joint stipulation to decide whether the motion may be filed. If permitted, the motion goes forward in all procedural aspects like a traditional motion for summary adjudication and can be made either by itself or as an alternative to a motion for summary judgment. See CCP §437c(f)(2),(s)(7). If the court does not allow the motion to be filed, the parties may request and the court must conduct an informal conference for further evaluation of the proposed stipulation, although no further papers may be filed in support of the proposed motion. CCP §437c(s)(2).
For more on motions for summary adjudication, see CEB's California Summary Judgment (Cal CEB 2011); California Civil Procedure Before Trial ch 36, (4th ed Cal CEB 2004).
© The Regents of the University of California, 2012. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog's author and/or owner is strictly prohibited.
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