Cavanaugh v. Landa
Defendant appeals from both an order denying his motion to set aside the entry of a default and the resulting default judgment against him that followed his failure to file an answer to the complaint of plaintiff Sandra W. Cavanaugh, as Trustee of the John R. Wierenga Living Trust (Cavanaugh). In denying the motion, the court found that Landa had made a general appearance in the case and that his mistaken belief that he had only made a special appearance was unreasonable.
Defendant contends that, in light of the public policy favoring cases being heard on their merits, the court abused its discretion by finding an inexcusable mistake of law and denying Landa's motion to set aside the entry of default and default judgment under Code of Civil Procedure section 473, subdivision (b) (hereafter section 473(b)). Specifically, he contends that his mistaken belief that he had never subjected himself to the jurisdiction of the court was not unreasonable given that the court failed to order him to file an answer. Court reject this contention and affirm the order and the judgment.
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