Request For Admissions: Plaintiff Found 75% Negligent In Bike-Truck Accident Properly Not Awarded Costs-Of-Proof Sanctions Where Defense Had Good Faith Belief In Contesting Negligence And Causation Issues

Defense Did Better Than “Hope Or A Roll Of The Dice” in Denying Two Key RFAs.

            In Munoz v. County of Imperial, Case No. D075805 (4^th Dist., Div. 1 Jan. 20, 2021) (unpublished), a bike rider sued after a personal injury accident with a pickup truck.  The jury awarded plaintiff $120,000 after determining she was 75% at fault, later upped by another $36,875 for pain and suffering based on an additur.  Before trial, the defense denied two key requests for admissions on negligence and causation.  After she won, plaintiff moved for costs-of-proof sanctions under CCP § 2033.420, a request which was denied.

            The denial was affirmed on appeal.  The defense had a good faith belief to deny the RFAs based on the contested nature of the two issues at trial, confirmed by highly contested liability proof in the form of independent witnesses and accident reconstruction experts.  In a quote we like from another case, the appellate court said the defense denials were more than “hope or a roll of the dice” giving rise to costs-of-proof sanctions.  (Grace v. Mansourian, 240 Cal.App.4^th 523, 532 (2015).)