Family Trust Property Owner Dismissed from Ventura County Sex Abuse Suit

December 2024

A plaintiff sued Ventura and Kern Counties, a teen alcohol rehabilitation center, an employee of the center, and the landlord of the rehabilitation center over alleged child sex abuse that occurred decades ago. Trepanier Tajima LLP defended a new family trust, created after the death of one of the trustees of the landlord property owner, a terminated family trust. The plaintiff attempted to sue the wrong trust pursuant to the statute of limitations revival law under California Code of Civil Procedure section 340.1. Plaintiff made multiple, defective attempts at service. Before reaching the merits of the case or the complex trust issues, Trepanier Tajima LLP challenged service on a relative of a deceased trustee via a motion to quash the plaintiff’s defective service of process. Instead of opposing the motion to quash, the plaintiff dismissed the trust from the case. This is a prime example of how calling out procedural defects early in the case can motivate a party to drop weak claims before more costly litigation ensues.