Soliz v. Williams

• Decision Date: 24 August 1999
• Docket Number: No. B119136,B119136
• Citation: 88 Cal.Rptr.2d 184,74 Cal.App.4th 577
• Court: California Court of Appeals Court of Appeals
• Parties: , 1999 Daily Journal D.A.R. 8805 Robert SOLIZ, Plaintiff and Appellant, v. Alexander H. WILLIAMS III, Defendant and Respondent.

Page 184

88 Cal.Rptr.2d 184

74 Cal.App.4th 577, 1999 Daily Journal D.A.R. 8805

Robert SOLIZ, Plaintiff and Appellant, v. Alexander H. WILLIAMS III, Defendant and Respondent.

No. B119136.

Court of Appeal, Second District, Division 5, California.

Aug. 24, 1999.

Certified for Partial Publication. ^*

Rees Lloyd, Banning, for Plaintiff and Appellant.

Lloyd W. Pellman, County Counsel, Philip S. Miller, Principal Deputy County Counsel, for Defendant and Respondent.

TURNER, P.J.

I. INTRODUCTION

Plaintiff, Robert Soliz, appeals after he declined to amend his complaint after being given leave to do so for damages against Alexander H. Williams, III, a Los Angeles Superior Court judge and the case was dismissed pursuant to stipulation. In the published portion of the opinion, we discuss the application of the absolute judicial immunity from a lawsuit for damages to plaintiff's state law claims. We reverse the order sustaining the demurrer to the complaint in part as to claims for defamation and violations of civil rights in the fourth and fifth causes of action respectively. We affirm the demurrer dismissal as to plaintiff's remaining claims.

II. FACTUAL ALLEGATIONS OF THE COMPLAINT

The allegations of the complaint, which we are required by law to presume are true (Aubry v. Tri-City Hospital Dist. (1992) 2 Cal.4th 962, 967, 9 Cal.Rptr.2d 92, 831 P.2d 317; Blank v. Kirwan (1985) 39 Cal.3d 311, 318, 216 Cal.Rptr. 718, 703 P.2d 58), are as follows. In November 1995, plaintiff, a person of Hispanic descent, was: an employee of the County of Los Angeles; in the words of the complaint "a blue collar worker"; a member of the Los Angeles County Chicano Employees Association (LACCEA): the LACCEA was an employee organization recognized by the County of Los Angeles; and a plaintiff himself in an underlying law suit entitled Rico v. Nunez (Super.Ct.L.A.County, No. BC105152). The underlying lawsuit sought to enjoin the LACCEA elections which were scheduled to be held in Lancaster. This was despite the fact that LACCEA was based in Los Angeles. A different judge other than defendant issued injunctive relief which included directing the president of LACCEA to open the organization's financial records "to the rank-and-file" plaintiffs and the issuance of a temporary restraining order against holding the election in Lancaster. Eventually, after a defective notice was corrected by the LACCEA leadership, the election was held in Lancaster. LACCEA members aligned with plaintiff then "swept the elections."

Plaintiff also filed another LACCEA related lawsuit raising issues of representation by a civil service advocate for the organization. (Soliz v. Ulloa (Super.Ct.L.A.County, No. BC108181).) There was a third pertinent lawsuit arising out of LACCEA activities. (Rico v. Ulloa (Super.Ct.L.A.County, No. BC105152 ¹).) In this latter lawsuit, another LACCEA member, Randolph N. Rico, sought compensatory and punitive damages arising out of his disqualification as a member and director of the organization. All three of these cases were found to be related and consolidated. The consolidated cases were assigned to defendant who sat in Department 35 of Los Angeles Superior Court in its central district.

On November 17, 1995, all of the plaintiffs and defendants in the underlying lawsuits were present in the courthouse for a settlement conference. The settlement conference was being conducted pursuant to defendant's orders. The parties were using the noon hour in an effort to continue to seek settlement. Some of the parties remained in the courtroom during the settlement negotiations. The plaintiffs were sitting in the hallway of the courtroom outside of Department 35. Defendant then "suddenly burst out of the door of the courtroom and angrily confronted" both plaintiffs in the underlying litigation. Defendant was not wearing a judicial robe. The complaint alleged: "[Defendant] in a very loud voice, in the hall, in the presence of other persons then in the public hall, verbally assaulted [plaintiff], and Rico, pointing his finger at plaintiff, and angrily yelling that plaintiffs' settlement demand was 'bullshit,' and, if they thought there was money in the case, they had 'shit for brains.' "

The response of plaintiff to defendant's conduct is set forth with specificity in the complaint. The specific allegations are as follows: "Plaintiff [ ], shocked and shamed by the conduct of defendant [ ], a judge, said nothing, and did nothing, as he feared the exercise of retaliatory authority by [defendant], who, although acting not in the courtroom but in the public hallway, and although acting during the lunch break and not during regular court hours, and although wearing not a robe but civilian clothes, was still a judge and cloaked with apparent authority of that office."

Plaintiff's lawyer had been down the hall in the courthouse making a telephone call. Plaintiff's counsel returned. At that time, defendant thumped his chest repeatedly. According to the complaint, defendant said, "[N]ow plaintiffs had to deal with him, i.e., [defendant], and that now he was their 'enemy.' " Defendant then entered the courtroom "still uttering imprecations in a loud voice." Defendant refused to grant the disqualification motion. The disqualification motion was supported by the declarations. Eventually, defendant recused himself.

On November 20, 1995, defendant spoke with a reporter for a newspaper, the Los Angeles Daily Journal. Defendant admitted that he had acted inappropriately. However, while speaking with the reporter, defendant denied to have acted as alleged by plaintiff as well as Mr. Rico in the disqualification motion. The statements made to the reporter were untrue and were made with the knowledge of their falsity. The reporter for the Los Angeles Daily Journal published the false statements of defendant. Defendant's false statements to the reporter made plaintiff appear to be a liar.

In February 1997, the California Commission on Judicial Performance (the commission) made public its findings after an investigation of defendant. The commission publicly admonished defendant for his conduct. The commission found the acts alleged by plaintiff and Mr. Rico in the disqualification motion were in fact true. This finding was contrary to the statements made by defendant to the reporter for the Los Angeles Daily Journal. ²

As a result of the foregoing allegations, plaintiff's complaint alleged causes of action for intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress and defamation. The third cause of action for defamation related to defendant's statements in the hallway during the settlement conference on November 17, 1995. The fourth cause of action for defamation involved the November 20, 1995, statements to the reporter. The fifth cause of action was for a violation of plaintiff's civil rights pursuant to 42 United States Code section 1983 (section 1983) as well as claims under the California Constitution. In connection with the section 1983 cause of action, he alleged violations of the following rights under the United States Constitution: First Amendment right to seek redress of grievances by means of litigation before the judicial branch; due process of law under the Fourteenth Amendment; equal protection of the laws; not to be discriminated against based upon his race or " 'socioeconomic' class"; discrimination based upon race or ancestry; and discrimination based upon plaintiff's membership in the "working class."

III. PROCEDURAL EVENTS

After the complaint was filed, defendant demurred to it. The sole ground of the demurrer was that defendant's conduct was such that he was immune from suit both under state and federal law. The matter was assigned to a judge from Orange County Superior Court. The demurrer was taken under submission without any appearances by the parties. The trial court concluded that all of defendant's conduct was such that he was immune from liability for monetary damages. The demurrer was sustained with leave to amend. Plaintiff then gave notice of an election not to amend. The parties then entered into a stipulation for entry of judgment based upon the failure to have amended the complaint. The stipulation specifically provided that plaintiff entered into the stipulation with the understanding that he would be permitted to appeal the order sustaining the demurrer. On October 31, 1997, the trial court entered judgment based upon the doctrine of judicial immunity from monetary damages liability in favor of defendant. On January 16, 1998, plaintiff filed a timely notice of appeal from the judgment of dismissal.

IV. STANDARD OF REVIEW

The present case involves a complaint against an employee of a public entity and a claim of immunity for liability in a civil trial for monetary damages. Because we are reviewing the sufficiency of a pleading, we apply the following standard of review to the state law claims: "The reviewing court gives the complaint a reasonable interpretation, and treats the demurrer as admitting all material facts properly pleaded. [Citations.] The court does not, however, assume the truth of contentions, deductions or conclusions of law. [Citation.] ... However, it is error for a trial court to sustain a demurrer when the plaintiff has stated a cause of action under any possible legal theory. [Citation.]" (Aubry v. Tri-City Hospital Dist., supra, 2 Cal.4th at pp. 966-967, 9 Cal.Rptr.2d 92, 831 P.2d 317.) Because the present case involves the application of a governmental immunity from liability for monetary damages to the state law claims in the complaint, we also apply the test articulated in Lopez v. Southern Cal. Rapid Transit Dist. (1985) 40 Cal.3d 780, 792-793, 221 Cal.Rptr. 840, 710 P.2d 907, where the California Supreme Court held: "It is well established that the allegations of a complaint must be liberally construed with a view to attaining substantial justice between the parties [citations]. We...