Shabahang

I. INTRODUCTION

Plaintiff and respondent, Shahrokh Shabahang, and defendant and appellant,

Christopher Sechrist, were partners in a dentistry practice. In November 2018, plaintiff

filed a civil action against defendant for dissolution of partnership, breach of contract,

breach of covenant of good faith and fair dealing, accounting, and fraud. Initially,

defendant responded to the complaint by filing an answer and a cross-complaint,

asserting his own claims against plaintiff as well as against numerous other named cross-

defendants. On September 25, 2019, defendant also filed a motion seeking dismissal of

the complaint as a strategic lawsuit against public participation (SLAPP) pursuant to

Code of Civil Procedure1 section 425.16 (anti-SLAPP motion). The trial court denied

defendant’s anti-SLAPP motion, and defendant appeals from that order.

While defendant’s appeal was pending, plaintiff filed an amended complaint and

propounded written discovery. When defendant failed to respond, the trial court granted

motions to compel and issued monetary sanctions against defendant for his failure to

respond. In response, defendant filed a petition seeking a writ of supersedeas to…