LOS ANGELES UNIFIED
DISTRICT v. CASASOLA
Filed 8/5/10
CERTIFIED FOR PUBLICATION
IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT
DIVISION FOUR
LOS ANGELES UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT,
Plaintiff and Respondent,
v.
RUDY CASASOLA et al.,
Defendants and Appellants.
B215465
(Los Angeles County
Super. Ct. No. BC351374)
APPEAL from
a judgment of the Superior Court of Los Angeles
County, Ann I. Jones, Judge.
Affirmed.
Callanan,
Rogers & Dzida and Joseph S. Dzida for Defendants and Appellants.
Oliver,
Sandifer & Murphy, Connie Cooke Sandifer and Cynthia C. Marian for
Plaintiff and Respondent.
Respondent Los Angeles Unified School
District (the District) acquired by eminent domain property on which appellants
Rudy and Teresa Casasola (the Casasolas) operated a small business. The Casasolas relocated their business to a
new, larger property and spent nearly $1.4 million moving their equipment and
repurposing the new property to accommodate their business. They then sought reimbursement from the
District for their relocation expenses.
The District paid the Casasolas $224,252 in moving and reestablishment
expenses, but rejected the remainder of the claim.
The
Casasolas challenge this determination on appeal, contending that their
reasonable relocation expenses are reimbursable as expenses incurred to
mitigate loss of business goodwill. They
also challenge the trial court's award to the District of $180,000 in
penalties, contending that the penalties are unconscionable. We affirm.
I. The Eminent Domain Complaint
The
Casasolas are the owners of a catering truck supply company (referred to as
Rudy's Wholesale or Western Catering).
Until October 2007, the catering supply company was located on the 4600
block of Western Avenue in Los Angeles (the property or the Western Avenue property).
On April
26, 2006,
the District filed an eminent domain
complaint seeking to condemn the property.
The Casasolas answered, claiming, among other things, the right to
compensation for loss of business goodwill under Code of Civil Procedure
section 1263.510 (section 1263.510).
II. The
Casasolas' Purchase of Replacement Property and Their Attempts to Vacate the
The
Casasolas purchased a replacement property located at 6236 South St. Andrews Place (the St. Andrews property). The St. Andrews property was much larger than the Western Avenue property, and it required
considerable reconfiguration to accommodate the Casasolas' catering business.[2]
The Casasolas had difficulty getting the work permitted and completed, and
they repeatedly requested additional time to remain on the property.
On August
30, 2007,
the parties signed a stipulation giving the Casasolas until September 4 to
vacate the property (the August 30 stipulation). In relevant part, the stipulation provided: â€
| Description | Respondent Los Angeles Unified School District (the District) acquired by eminent domain property on which appellants Rudy and Teresa Casasola (the Casasolas) operated a small business. The Casasolas relocated their business to a new, larger property and spent nearly $1.4 million moving their equipment and repurposing the new property to accommodate their business. They then sought reimbursement from the District for their relocation expenses. The District paid the Casasolas $224,252 in moving and reestablishment expenses, but rejected the remainder of the claim. The Casasolas challenge this determination on appeal, contending that their reasonable relocation expenses are reimbursable as expenses incurred to mitigate loss of business goodwill. They also challenge the trial court's award to the District of $180,000 in penalties, contending that the penalties are unconscionable. Court affirm. |
| Rating |
