Echols

INTRODUCTION

Aaron Echols seeks, in equity, to vacate a default judgment entered against him in a prior case. He alleges that the default judgment against him in the original case is void because he was never served with copies of a summons and complaint. The County filed a demurrer to Echols’s complaint. The trial court sustained the demurrer without leave to amend. We reverse. As we explain below, under well-settled law, the County did not state proper grounds for a demurrer below and does not do so on appeal. Accordingly, we remand for further proceedings.

BACKGROUND

I. The Prior Action1

On September 13, 1998, the County filed a complaint for child support against Echols in County of Los Angeles v. Echols, Case No. BY0347481. The County filed a proof of service stating that Echols was served on September 26, 1998 by leaving the relevant documents with a co-tenant at 1199 S. Orange Grove Ave in Los Angeles. In this action, Echols alleges that he has never resided at that address. He alleges he never knew the tenant with whom the documents were left. According to Echols’s pleading in this

On review of an order sustaining a demurrer, “‘[w]e treat the demurrer as…