Department of Fair Employment & Housing v. Superior Court
Opinion
Opinion
Danielson, J.
The California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) petitions this court for a writ of mandate directing respondent court to vacate its order dated May 11, 1990, denying DFEH’s motion to compel further responses to written interrogatories and demands for inspection of documents directed to J. Michael Young, doing business as Whittier Orthopedic Service, and J. Michael Young (Young), the real party in interest.
We deny the petition.
Issue Presented
The question presented in this proceeding in mandamus is whether parties in whose favor a final judgment for injunctive relief has been entered, can obtain aid in enforcing that judgment under the Civil Discovery Act of 1986 before commencing a contempt proceeding to enforce that judgment. We hold that they cannot, because the existence of a pending action is a condition precedent to the application of that act.
Factual and Procedural Statement
On October 20, 1986, DFEH filed a complaint for injunctive relief (Gov. Code, §§ 12964, 12973) against Young to enforce a settlement agreement entered into on or about April 1, 1986, by DFEH, Young, and Young’s former employee, Evelyn Waltman (Waltman) resulting from an…