Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. v. Superior Court of Los Angeles County
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The Court of Appeal granted defendant's petition for writ of mandate and ordered the trial court to dismiss the entire action under Code of Civil Procedure sections 583.310 and 583.360. The panel held that an order staying responsive pleadings and outstanding discovery requests, while also requiring the parties to negotiate and agree on a case management plan and to prepare and file a joint statement specifically addressing case-related issues in multiple areas (and also allowing the parties to informally exchange documents), does not "effect a complete stay of the prosecution of the action" within the meaning of Gaines v. Fidelity National Title Ins. Co., 62 Cal.4th 1081, 1087, and Bruns v. E-Commerce Exchange, Inc., 51 Cal.4th 717, 730.
In this case, the trial court erred when it concluded that the five-year period was tolled for 43 days because of such a stay, issued at the outset of the case. In the alternative, even if the court assumed the 43-day tolling period was permissible, the trial court's order granting trial preference and setting the trial for April 10, 2018, was a manifest abuse of discretion.
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