UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA CIVIL MINUTES – GENERAL Case No. CV 19-10976-CJC-AFM Date: February 27, 2020 Title: BRENDA CORE v. ZOHRAB G. KASSABIAN, et al.

PRESENT: HONORABLE CORMAC J. CARNEY, UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE Gabriela Garcia N/A Deputy Clerk Court Reporter ATTORNEYS PRESENT FOR PLAINTIFF: ATTORNEYS PRESENT FOR DEFENDANT: None Present None Present PROCEEDINGS: (IN CHAMBERS) ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE AS TO WHY THIS COURT SHOULD NOT DECLINE TO EXERCISE SUPPLEMENTAL JURISDICTION OVER PLAINTIFF’S UNRUH ACT CLAIM On December 31, 2019, Plaintiff Brenda Core filed this action against Defendants Zohrab G. Kassabian and Sonia S. Kassabian, who allegedly own a No. 2 Famous Pizza restaurant in Van Nuys, California, alleging violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) and California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act (“Unruh Act”). (Dkt. 1 [Complaint].) Plaintiff seeks injunctive relief under the ADA and statutory damages under the Unruh Act. (Id. at 15.) Plaintiff contends that this Court has federal question jurisdiction over the ADA claim and supplemental jurisdiction over the Unruh Act and other state law claims. (Id. ¶¶ 7–8.) Supplemental jurisdiction “is a doctrine of discretion, not of plaintiff’s right.” United Mine Workers v. Gibbs,

(1966). District courts have discretion to decline to exercise supplemental jurisdiction if: “(1) the claim raises a novel or complex issue of State law, (2) the claim substantially predominates over the claim or claims over which the district court has original jurisdiction, (3) the district court has dismissed all claims over which it has original jurisdiction, or (4) in exceptional circumstances, there are other compelling reasons for declining jurisdiction.”

(c). UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

CIVIL MINUTES – GENERAL

Case No. CV 19-10796-CJC-AFM Date: February 27, 2020 Page 2

Several federal district courts across California have declined to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over Unruh Act claims brought alongside ADA claims, citing

(c)(2) & (c)(4). See, e.g., See, e.g., Estrada v. Fiesta III, LLC,

, at *5 (C.D. Cal. Jan. 9, 2020) (declining to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over the plaintiff’s Unruh Act claim because “exceptional circumstances” and “compelling reasons” existed, and stating that the plaintiff may “pursue his Unruh Act claim in state court—the appropriate forum for such claim under these circumstances”); Langer v. Mobeeus, Inc.,

, at *5 (C.D. Cal. Jan. 2, 2020) (similar); Langer v. Deddeh,

, at *2 (S.D. Cal. Oct. 4, 2019) (declining to exercise supplemental jurisdiction because the Unruh Act claim predominated over the ADA claim and the interests of comity and discouraging forum shopping constituted exceptional circumstances); Theroux v. Oceanside Motel-9, LP,

, at *2 (S.D. Cal. Sept. 20, 2019) (similar); Langer v. Petras,

, at *2 (S.D. Cal. July 31, 2019) (similar); Spikes v. All Pro Auto Repair, Inc.,

, at *2 (S.D. Cal. Aug. 26, 2019) (dismissing for these reasons various state law claims including claims for violation of the Unruh Act, California Health and Safety Code Section 19955, negligence per se, and negligence); Rutherford v. Ara Lebanese Grill,

, at *5 (S.D. Cal. Mar. 6, 2019) (finding that “it would be improper to allow Plaintiff to use the federal court system as a loophole to evade California’s pleading requirements”). The Court ORDERS Plaintiff to show cause as to why it should not decline to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over the Unruh Act claim in the Complaint for similar reasons.

Plaintiff shall file a response to this Order to Show Cause by March 12, 2020. In the response, Plaintiff shall identify the amount of statutory damages sought in this action. Plaintiff and Plaintiff’s counsel shall also include declarations in their responses which provide all facts necessary for the Court to determine if they satisfy the definition of a “high-frequency litigant” under California Civil Procedure Code §§ 425.55(b)(1) & (2).

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MINUTES FORM 11 CIVIL-GEN Initials of Deputy Clerk GGA