Sternick

I. BACKGROUND2

Sternick filed a form complaint against the Diocese and Retreat Center on March 1, 2016.3 The complaint alleges the Diocese owns and operates the Retreat Center. The complaint further alleges that a fire broke out at the Retreat Center on June 22, 2014. According to the complaint, the fire spread to Sternick’s nearby property, causing damage to her personal and real properties. The complaint does not address the cause or causes of the fire. However, the record elsewhere indicates that the fire was caused by Cirilo Alvarado and Jacinto Flores, members of a radio club that used the Retreat Center’s property for club activities. 4 The record indicates that Alvarado and Flores were attempting to construct a cattle barrier around a pump house in which radio club equipment was stored. A spark generated in the construction process apparently blew onto some dry grass, causing the fire to ignite. The Diocese and Retreat Center answered the complaint and denied the allegations. A. Related Cases Other actions were brought against the Diocese and Retreat Center in the aftermath of the fire. The Diocese and Retreat Center gave notice of one such case—

2 We have only a…