A judge who allowed two former tow truck operators to continue
filing new cases after being dubbed
”
vexatious litigants
”
in civil court told them Wednesday they might not be able to
pursue those claims.
HOLLISTER
A judge who allowed two former tow truck operators to continue filing new cases after being dubbed “vexatious litigants” in civil court told them Wednesday they might not be able to pursue those claims.
San Benito County Superior Court Judge Harry Tobias told Vincent Cardinalli Sr., 64, and his son, Paul Greer, 30, it was brought to his attention the corporate status of respective companies A&R Associates and B&C Towing had been suspended.
“Therefore, you are not entitled to pursue any litigation,” Tobias told Greer and Cardinalli in court Wednesday.
The two have filed cases to collect on what they claim have been unpaid towing and storage fees, but a Santa Clara Court ruling earlier this year prevents them from filing without a judge’s permission.
Greer said he would most likely dismiss his two claims.
Tobias said Greg Adler, an attorney for auto-salvage company Copart Inc., provided him with documents showing the suspensions. Tobias suggested in September that preventing Cardinalli and Greer from filing cases would draw out the statue of limitations – the three-year window that plaintiffs have to file a case.
Adler prevailed in three lawsuits by Greer and helped two other defendants get the son and his father declared vexatious litigants. He said the court should have been aware of the corporate suspensions.
“This is obviously not an issue that unrepresented defendants in small claims court should be expected to raise on their own,” Adler said by phone Wednesday.
Suspended corporations cannot pursue any new or existing claims in court, Tobias said. The judge delayed two cases for Greer, who was in court Wednesday to pursue claims of more than $2,000 each against Rufino E. Ventura and Guadalupe Cervantes Carranza, until Jan. 9, 2008 so he can respond to the finding.
“I wasn’t aware of it at all, truthfully,” Greer said of his company’s corporate status outside of the courtroom, later adding, “I’m not sure what I’m going to do. I’m going to talk to the attorney. My gut feeling is I’ll probably dismiss them.”
Greer said he only recently became aware that B&C Towing Inc. was suspended because the state sent the notice to the wrong address.
According to the California Secretary of State, B&C Towing Inc. was suspended by the California Franchise Tax Board “pursuant to the provisions of the California Revenue and Taxation Code” on July 2. Greer filed the claims against Rufino and Carranza in August.
Cardinalli Sr. appeared in court to pursue two older claims that had been filed before he was declared a vexatious litigant. He has four claims to be heard Wednesday that were filed after he was legally limited.
On Jan. 8, 2008, Greer and Cardinalli Sr. are expected to enter pleas to numerous felony charges in Santa Clara County related to pursuing tow claims. They were arrested in June and were eventually charged with 150 felonies, ranging from perjury to fraud.
Cardinalli Sr. faces up to 65 years and eight months and Greer faces up to 43 years and eight months in prison if convicted on all charges, according to the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office.
