Travelers Insurance v. Superior Court

Petitioner Travelers Insurance Company, a corporation (Travelers) seeks by this petition for writs of mandate and prohibition to review the propriety of an order of respondent court refusing to dismiss the class action elements of an action filed in respondent court by Maurice Herboldsheimer (Herboldsheimer) real party. in interest. Travelers contends that respondent court should have granted its motion to dismiss the class action elements of the class action filed by Herboldsheimer because the respondent court had previously erroneously determined the issue of liability before determining the issue of whether or not the action was an appropriate class action and, if so, the issue of the identity of the members of the class and the form of notices to be given to the class, as required by principles enunciated in Home Savings & Loan Assn. v. Superior Court (1974) 42 Cal.App.3d 1006 [ 117 Cal.Rptr. 485 ] (herein HOME I) and Home Savings & Loan Assn. v. Superior Court (1976) 54 Cal.App.3d 208 [ 126 Cal.Rptr. 511 ] (herein HOME II). Pursuant to such order of severance respondent court rendered an interim or provisional decision that Travelers was liable which decision was…