Avoyan

BACKGROUND

On March 6, 2020, plaintiff filed a complaint against the City, seeking damages for personal injury pursuant to causes of action for premises liability and negligence. Plaintiff alleged the City was liable for proximately causing injuries she suffered when she tripped and fell on a sidewalk. The form complaint was prepared by K&L Associates (K&L), the same law firm representing plaintiff on appeal.

1 On August 28, 2020, the superior court issued an Order to Show Cause (OSC) why plaintiff’s action should not be dismissed and sanctions imposed due to her failure to file proof of service of her complaint on the City and to either obtain an answer or enter default. Between October 2020 and February 2022, the court issued seven more OSCs, each time cancelling the prior OSC and setting a new date for plaintiff to appear and show cause. OSCs that were issued by the court in September 2021, November 2021, and February 2022, included a provision allowing appearance by telephone due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. During the entire period, plaintiff did not file any document in her case, either to oppose the OSCs or otherwise to explain her inaction. On July 19, 2022, the…