P. S. & S., Inc. v. Superior Court

This is a proceeding for a writ of prohibition to restrain respondent court from taking any further action on the motion of the real party in interest (Collins) for indemnification under section 830 of the Corporations Code. We issued an order temporarily staying any action in respondent court pending our decision herein on the merits, and issued an order to show cause. Return to that order has been made and the matter has been orally argued before us. For the reasons hereinafter stated, we grant the petition.

On February 20, 1969, Lawrence Collins, the real party in interest, and other persons who were directors, officers or employees of P. S. & S., Inc., a California corporation—the petitioner in this proceeding—were named as defendants in a criminal action in respondent court, being the case of People v. Lawrence Collins, number A-246,545 in the files of that court. Petitioner was not a party to that litigation. Several of the counts against Coffins were dismissed by the trial court; his trial on the remaining counts was severed and, at his trial, he was acquitted on the counts not theretofore dismissed. The People appealed from the dismissal order but, after Coffins’…