Case Number: BC472056 Hearing Date: April 21, 2014 Dept: 34

Plainitff’s Request for Entry of Default Judgment against Defendants Eduardo Canas, Wilshire Park Realty & Associates, Inc., and Eddy Guillermo Marin is GRANTED in the amount of $209,286.68 plus costs as indicated below.

BACKGROUND: Plaintiff Valencia Valley, LLC commenced this action against defendants on October 21, 2011. On January 11, 2012, Plaintiff filed its first amended complaint alleging twenty-one causes of action against various defendants. On May 17, 2012, Plaintiff filed a second amended complaint alleging twenty causes of action against various defendants. Plaintiff alleges that defendants “collectively conspired to defraud Plaintiff in its purchase of a single-family residence, which was being sold as a ‘short-sale.’” (SAC ¶ 1.) Plaintiff claims that defendants made various false representations to plaintiff and provided plaintiff with false documents in connection with the single-family residence. (Ibid.) In reliance on defendants’ various oral and written misrepresentations, plaintiff purchased the subject property for $470,000. (Ibid.) Despite paying $470,000 for the property, Plaintiff still does not have title. (Id., ¶¶ 2, 28.)

Plaintiff believes that the defendants “illegally profited from the transaction.” (SAC ¶ 2.) In support of this claim, plaintiff alleges that “Defendants used $322,700 to pay off the First Deed of Trust” and “attempted to use $3,000 to pay the Second Deed of Trust on the property, but Bank of America, the holder of the Second Deed of Trust, refused to accept the $3,000 as payment in full of the Second Deed of Trust.” (Ibid.) The remaining amount, “in excess of $144,300[,] has been taken and split amongst Defendants.” (Ibid.)

Plaintiff filed a third amended complaint in January 2013. Defaults were entered against Canas, Wilshire Park, and Marin on June 13, 2013.

Plaintiff previously sought default judgment against the defaulting defendants. On 8/28/13, the Court denied this request on the basis of the one-judgment rule. The Court ruled that plaintiff must prove up its case against these defendants at the time of trial and that the Court will enter one judgment.

On 4/25/12, plaintiff dismissed defendants Brown and Papikyan. On 5/24/12, plaintiff dismissed defendant Gio Khair. On 8/28/13, plaintiff dismissed the Doe defendants. On 9/30/13, plaintiff dismissed defendants Pacific Coast Title Company and Commonwealth Land Title Insurance Company. On 1/6/14, plaintiff dismissed defendants Point Break Escrow, Inc., Bert Autore, and Jackie Burchell. On 2/26/14, plaintiff dismissed defendants Antiqullah Nabizada aka Gio Khair aka Avon Tess, Jameson Rodgers aka Kevin Smith, Samuel Papikyan, and Tony Becker.

On 1/27/14, the Court denied plaintiff’s renewed request for entry of default judgment. As the Court stated at that time: “There is no showing as to whether or not plaintiff will recover duplicative amounts. In the pleadings, plaintiff requests the same amount – $470,000.00 – against all defendants in order to recover the purchase price for the property. The Court has previously recognized a good faith settlement between plaintiff and several other defendants. Plaintiff has not subtracted any settlement amount from the damages request, nor has it explained its failure to do so.”

ANALYSIS:

Plaintiff has corrected the problems mentioned by the court on January 27, 2014. Plaintiff points out that defendant Specialized Loan Services LLC was dismissed on 12/4/13. Therefore, all parties have been dismissed except for the defaulted defendants.

Plaintiff now provides evidence as to the previous settlement and seeks only the difference between the alleged damages ($470,000.00) and the amount received from other defendants in the settlement ($260,713.32). (See Wong Decl., ¶ 19.)

The request for entry of default judgment is GRANTED. Plaintiff is entitled to recover from defendants Eduardo Canas, Wilshire Park Realty & Associates, Inc., and Eddy Guillermo Marin dba Wilshire Park Realty, jointly and severally, damages in the amount of $209,286.68 and interest in the amount of $41,261.86. Plaintiff may recover costs in the amounts of $780.00 from Canas, $435.00 from Wilshire Park Realty & Associates, and $559.00 from Marin.