Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California

I served plaintiff with discovery papers almost three weeks before trial. They didnt respond and I filed a motion to compel. However, during this time a trial date was set. When we went for the motion to compel, the judge had me serve them again and gave them five days to respond and reset the trial date.

Here is the thing, their five days ends on lets say the 1st and the trial date is on the 3rd. So, naturally on that same day they filed a request to my discovery by objecting to it based on ccp 2024.040(b)(1).

They are clearly trying to do everything to avoid discovery.

My question is this, I need discovery to win my case. What do I do? Ask the judge to extend the trial date so its five days before trial? or file a motion to compel further response? This is an unlawful detainer case and I am the defendant. Any help is appreciated. Thanks.


Asked on 6/04/11, 5:37 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Robert F. Cohen Law Office of Robert F. Cohen

You might file an ex parte application (with proper ex parte notice) to continue the trial and advance/set a hearing date on the motion to compel. In addition, you might issue a trial subpoena for those documents to be produced at trial, or have the court bar the plaintiff from using those documents at trial because it refused to produce them during discovery. More than likely, though, the documents might help your case, and be of no use in plaintiff's case in chief. So the first course might be the better way to proceed.

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Answered on 6/05/11, 3:39 pm


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