 |
 |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|
|
|
|
Turner v. Superior Court of Los Angeles County11/24/1998
o not know Arianna's need. We do not know the reasonableness of her party arbitrator's proposed charges. We do not know the alternatives.
Fifth and finally, we do not see the present relevance of Taggares v. Superior Court (1998) 62 Cal.App.4th 94, one of the cases relied on by Arianna in the trial court. In Taggares, Division One of the Fourth District imposed limits on the trial court's ability to sua sponte appoint a privately compensated discovery referee in cases where the plaintiff is indigent. In Taggares, the plaintiff presented evidence of her indigency -- she was an unemployed widow with three children who was surviving on an income of about $600 per month, and who had lost her home as the result of her inability to repay the loan that was the subject of the underlying action. (Id. at pp. 99-100.) Taggares holds that the plaintiff's indigency does not justify an order shifting the cost of the reference to the defendant. Instead, said the Court of Appeal, the trial court should consider a laundry list of factors in deciding whether an involuntary reference is really necessary. If it is then determined that the "matter is appropriate for reference but one party is not reasonably able to finance private dispute resolution, the court should not refer unless it can do so without costs to that party. Possible options are: (1) If the parties agree, permitting them to select from a panel of attorneys who have agreed to serve pro bono in matters of this nature, or from a court-approved list of mediators and/or arbitrators willing to serve without charge; (2) require the parties to select from a court-approved list of retired Judges willing to volunteer services in indigent cases; or (3) refer to the presiding Judge for assignment to an available department or assigned Judge." (Taggares v. Superior Court, supra, 62 Cal.App.4th at p. 106.) Taggares addresses involuntary, non-consensual discovery references. On the state of the record before us, the arbitration provision is neither involuntary nor non-consensual. It is part of the contract accepted by Arianna's grandfather and it is binding on Arianna. (County of Contra Costa v. Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. (1996) 47 Cal.App.4th 237, 242 [minors are bound by a parent's agreement to arbitrate malpractice claims filed against a health care provider].)
Of course, we do see the relevance of Taggares to the fundamental issue of fees in compelled arbitrations. Upon a proper showing of indigency or extreme hardship and a concomitant showing that her chosen party arbitrator has a legitimate basis for his fees, and of the absence of an acceptable available alternative party arbitrator, or upon a showing that, as to her, the Kaiser contract does not afford the required minimum levels of integrity, Arianna might have the right to shift all or some portion of her party arbitrator's fees to Kaiser or, in the alternative, to avoid the arbitration provision and proceed instead with the jury trial she wants. On this record, however, the predicate factual determinations cannot be made and these legal issues cannot be decided.
DISPOSITION
The petition is denied. The parties are to pay their own costs of these writ proceedings.
CERTIFIED FOR PUBLICATION.
We concur:
SPENCER, P.J.
MASTERSON, J.
Page 1 2 3 4 California Personal Injury Attorneys
Personal Injury Lawyers
|
| |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|