Mid-Wilshire Health Care Center v. Dr. Leevil CA4/3

INTRODUCTION

We granted a rehearing in this matter because we wanted to give additional consideration to the question of costs on appeal. Having done so, we conclude no changes are warranted. Mid-Wilshire Property, L.P. (Mid-Wilshire), and Mid-Wilshire Health Care Center, appeal from a judgment in favor of respondents Dr. Leevil, LLC (Dr. Leevil), and Lido Holding Company, LLC (Lido), entered after a proceeding bearing a passing resemblance to a trial took place in the superior court. This proceeding began in August 2017 and ended in November 2019. The two-year suspension was necessary because a core issue in the case – whether a late fee sought by Dr. Leevil was an unlawful penalty – was before a court in Ventura County. The record indicates that all parties and the court understood how crucial the resolution of this issue was, right up until the last day of trial in November 2019. Then it was ignored. The case and this appeal concern the foreclosure sale of commercial property belonging to Mid-Wilshire, which had secured a loan eventually owned by Dr. Leevil. Mid-Wilshire and a related company, Westlake Village Property, L.P., both owed money to Dr. Leevil, and both defaulted…