ocean tower lawsuit outcomeocean tower lawsuit outcome

The lawsuit alleges that Spahi, who now owns a controlling interest and 40 units in the property, misappropriated $11 million out of $50 million FEMA paid Ocean Towers to make repairs after the 1994 Northridge earthquake.". [10] At 9am on December 13, 2009, the building was imploded by Controlled Demolition, Inc. By the time it fell the building weighed 55,000 short tons (50,000t) and is reported to be the tallest and largest reinforced concrete structure ever imploded. This action is stayed pending the outcome of the 2015 action. Spahi concedes the primary right at issue in the 2015 action is the HOAs right to be governed by honest and faithful directors, who were duty-bound to act in good faith and in the best interests of the corporation. Opposition at pg. *******0918, Demurrer and Motion to Strike Portions of the First Amended Complaint, Motion for Admission as Counsel Pro Hac Vice. http://texasgeotechnicalengineer.blogspot.com/2010/01/ocean-tower-implosion-photos.html, https://www.fiverr.com/seoservice35/make-390-dofollow-backlinks-manually-blog-comments-low-obl. He argues a significant risk of contradictory rulings in the two actions and that a stay will not conflict with the courts prior demurrer ruling because the demurrer ruling was based on the primary right doctrine, whereas this motion seeks to apply the broader exclusive concurrent jurisdiction doctrine. SMart (Santa Monica Architects for a Responsible Tomorrow) Last weeks column was Part 1. When a party properly requests affirmative relief by demurrer or answer or by motion to dismiss, stay or transfer on the grounds of exclusive concurrent jurisdiction, the second court loses jurisdiction over the subject matter and cannot issue rulings on the merits. P, Ocean Towers Housing Corporation v. John Spahi et al., Case No. An attorney who files papers violating these requirements is subject to sanctions, including dismissal. Nonetheless, they arise out of the same subject matter purchase agreements entered by Spahis alleged alter egos and seek the same damages the costs incurred by the HOA in defending against the US Bank litigation. OCEAN TOWERS HOUSING CORPORATION VS SEIF ASCAR AS THE TRUSTEE OF THE WINDSOR PROPERTY TRUST, ET AL. [6], After a month of structural testing the construction of Ocean Tower began on April 5, 2006. 0000007824 00000 n 0000007060 00000 n A posted article about Ocean towers contains a ton of false information, I'd love a chance to discuss with the author and set the record straight. The court sustained to the extent the HOA sought relief for Spahis alleged sham sales but overruled to the extent the action sought to enforce indemnification provisions in the sale agreements. This caused increasing levels of damage to the structural system due to load redistribution and overload of structural elements. 0000001976 00000 n When courts apply sanctions, they are generally to be imposed in an incremental approach, with terminating sanctions being the last resort., A plaintiff cannot divide a primary right and enforce it in two suits, including when the first suit is still pending when the second is filed[. Calvillo immediately took control of the Ocean Tower settlement proceeds and placed them in a "Receivership Account" at Inter National Bank. Did that happen? Donald Trump has settled a lawsuit with more than 100 would-be condo buyers who lost millions of dollars when a Trump-branded luxury condominium project in Baja . . Donald Trump settles lawsuit over Baja condo resort that went bust The completed building would stand 445 feet (136m) tall and be one of the tallest structures in the Rio Grande Valley. SC124263 (the original action) pending in Dept. Moreover, the Isens were aware of the harm to the Spahis that would result from the false statements and intended to cause such harm, the appellate court ruling stated about Spahis lawsuit. The podium of the building was a large parking garage with the homes beginning at 55 feet (17m) above sea level. Yo! Ocean Towers is a 317-unit luxury cooperative apartment building high-rise located at 201 Ocean Avenue. Therefore, under. Cal. 1. The fact that the parties in two actions are different does not preclude application of the rule if the two actions share a subject matter. We use cookies to personalise content and ads, to provide social media features and to analyse our traffic. This litigation, involving a signature project in San Francisco with a number of well-known unit owners, including former 49ers' quarterback Joe Montana, was featured on a segment on 60 Minutes and heavily covered by local and national print and broadcast media. Defendant Spahi cites to Glade v. Glade, where an action was stayed pending the resolution of a prior action within the same superior court involving the same claims. In 2006 construction began on the 31-story condo building known at the "Ocean Tower" . ;128.7(b)(1), (4). According to the appellate courts ruling, Spahi believed representatives of Isen Investments attempted to exploit his financial difficulties to obtain his Ocean Tower units at artificially depressed prices., Specifically, Spahi alleged Isen Investments informed prospective buyers and tenants both him and his family were thieves, crooks and swindlers.. Omar Spahi, who owns units in Ocean Towers near the intersection of Ocean Avenue and San Vicente Boulevard filed a lawsuit in 2010 against Isen Investments, Inc., alleging the firm had manipulated the market of his luxury apartments by defaming him. Declaration - DECLARATION OF HERBERT NACION RE: PAYMENT AND SUBMISSION OF PRO HAC VICE APPLICATION TO STATE BAR OF CA, Minute Order - MINUTE ORDER (CASE MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE; DEFENDANT JOHN SPAHI'S DEMURRER -), Reply - JOHN SPAHIS REPLY MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF DEMURRER TO PLAINTIFFS FIRST AMENDED COMPLAINT, Reply - DEFENDANT JOHN SPAHIS REPLY IN SUPPORT OF HIS REQUEST FOR JUDICAL NOTICE, Request for Judicial Notice - DEFENDANT JOHN SPAHIS SECOND REQUEST FOR JUDICAL NOTICE IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANTS JOHN SPAHIS DEMURRER TO THE FIRST AMENDED COMPLAINT, Reply - JOHN SPAHIS REPLY MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF MOTION TO STRIKE THE PUNITIVE DAMAGES CLAIM FROM THE FIRST AMENDED COMPLAINT, Objection - OBJECTION TO DEFENDANT JOHN SPAHI'S REQUEST FOR JUDICIAL NOTICE FILED IN SUPPORT OF DEMURRER TO FIRST AMENDED COMPLAINT, Opposition - OPPOSITION OF PLAINTIFF OCEAN TOWERS HOUSING TO SPAHI'S DEMURRER TO THE FIRST AMENDED COMPLAINT, Opposition - OPPOSITION OF PLAINTIFF OCEAN TOWERS HOUSING TO SPAHI'S MOTION TO STRIKE PUNITIVE CLAIM FROM FIRST AMENDED COMPLAINT, Response - RESPONSE TO PLAINTIFF OCEAN TOWERS HOUSING CORPORATION'S EX PARTE APPLICATION FOR AN ORDER CONTINUING HEARING DATE), Ex Parte Application - EX PARTE APPLICATION OF PLAINTIFF OCEAN TOWERS HOUSING CORPORATION'S FOR AN ORDER CONTINUING HEARING DATE ON JOHN SPAHI'S DEMURRER AND MOTION TO STRIKE REGARDING THE FIRST AMEND, Cases involving other agreements or torts not classified elsewhere, 190, 1190, 2190, 3190, 4190, 4194, 5190, 5196. It was nicknamed "Faulty Towers" and "The Leaning Tower of South Padre Island". By continuing to use this website, you agree to UniCourts General Disclaimer, Terms of Service, Legal To Wear? - News of South Padre Transbay Joint Powers Authority (TJPA), et al. And anyone who challenges him is immediately sued," she said. The purchase agreements contained indemnification provisions, under which buyers would indemnify the HOA. 2022-03-17, Los Angeles County Superior Courts | Property | Brentwood News [3] It continued for two years with much of the main structure completed until differential settlement saw parts of the building sink by over 14 inches (360mm). In a hearing conducted on June 13, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Marian Kohl said that she was inclined to appoint a receiver. Preliminary evaluation showed that the tower's core had sunk 14 to 16 inches (360 to 410mm), while the attached parking lot had shifted less than half that distance. PDF Pro se litigants in the code of judicial conduct - NCSC 0000314725 00000 n The Ocean Tower at South Padre Island has been dubbed the 'leaning tower of South Padre' because parts of it have sunk a foot or more into the sand. 75 0 obj <> endobj xref 75 50 0000000016 00000 n Plaintiff seeks to enforce those indemnification provisions and recover legal fees. Ocean Tower SPI was an unfinished, 31-story condominium in South Padre Island, Cameron County, Texas, United States, that was imploded when it was deemed unsafe to remain standing. Plaintiff argues the primary right in the 2015 action is the HOAs right to be governed by a board that fulfills its fiduciary duties, while the 2019 action involves the boards right to enforce its written agreements with Spahi. hXrH}+Q$Y#o> hM`+ {z>cw?x. =U:y2O7:}c(#J0a?sGHL%GU_o#]n&/v4P,}s{OBeo~3,[G#Lj=*}0-PN->3}b)f|vpqP 4(. U.S. BANK, N.A. v. OCEAN TOWERS HOUSING CORPORATION - Leagle Palisades News. In November 2008. The language does not affirmatively state any of the identified categories exists but is a broad denial that neither defendant nor anyone associated with defendant harmed plaintiff. Code of Civ. The HOA alleges it has paid millions of dollars in litigation initiated against it by US Bank because of these sales and seeks indemnification from Spahi and his alter egos. Plaintiffs sued the tower's developer and adjacent property owners, including Jones Day's client, TJPA. BC359619 (Superior Ct.); B198657 (Appellate). ClassifiedsDirectoryAboutContactAdvertise, Prestige property at 201 Ocean Ave. has completed three years of litigation. Pitmaster/Chef Kevin Bludso To Open Barbecue in Santa Monica, Elizabeth McGovern Lights Up The Stage in Ava The Secret Conversations, Film: MAFIA MAMMA Fun Film With Great Setup And Lead Actresses, Ingos Tasty Diner To Reopen in Santa Monica. The litigation is still on-going and the matter has not been adjudicated fully yet. This action will be stayed pending the outcome of the original action. Thus, Spahi argues, the cases are necessarily related, and the concurrent jurisdiction rule applies. ocean tower lawsuit outcome. O of this court, alleging John Spahi engaged in a scheme to fraudulently transfer title of various units in the complex to himself through sales to alter egos. 0000002989 00000 n %PDF-1.5 % Plaintiffs rescission claim constitutes an improper attempt to split the primary right at issue in the 2015 action. The current action initially contained causes of action for (1) rescission of the purchase agreements, (2) breach of indemnification agreement and (3) judicial foreclosure. Disabled Veterans Still Homeless After VA Opens New Housing, Police Investigate Assault at Santa Monica Restaurant, Suspect Still at Large, Mayor Karen Bass Releases Statement Regarding The Death of Former Mayor Richard Riordan, Councilmember Traci Park Advises Westside Residents To Tune In To Budget And Finance Meetings On Proposed Budget For The City, Los Angeles Delays Spending Most of the Funds Raised by Mansion Tax Until Legal Challenges Are Resolved. Ocean Tower - Wikipedia According to the ruling, representatives of Isen Investments allegedly began defaming Spahi and conspiring to deflate the value of his real estate holdings after Spahi had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in December 2009. " The lawsuit alleges that Spahi, who now owns a controlling interest and 40 units in the property, misappropriated $11 million out of $50 million FEMA paid Ocean Towers to make repairs after the 1994 Northridge earthquake." . O of this court, alleging John Spahi engaged in a scheme to fraudulently transfer title of various units in the complex to himself through sales to alter egos. The developers of the Ocean Tower condominiums on South Padre Island have filed suit in Cameron County, claiming fraud on behalf of three firms involved with the engineering and construction of the high-rise building. Ocean Towers has taken on 3 loan since that time and has passed all due diligence from all the lenders. 0000003831 00000 n According to the buildings website, Spahis father, John, serves on the Ocean Towers board of directors as secretary. I remember when I started blogging a few months ago; I would put in a lot of effort into writing good quality articles, post them on my blog and somehow expect the comments to start pouring in. Cal. 41 0 obj <>/Filter/FlateDecode/ID[<9AE8F4DA070C105AF9C84CF8D5A2177A><816DFA2E18CBA5439B6EC8283FD421D2>]/Index[33 22]/Info 32 0 R/Length 60/Prev 39087/Root 34 0 R/Size 55/Type/XRef/W[1 2 1]>>stream CRESTWOOD HILLS ASSOCIATION VS JON M. LEADER, ET AL. Therefore, under Garamendi and the doctrine of exclusive concurrent jurisdiction, this court lacks jurisdiction to appoint a receiver. Under the doctrine of exclusive concurrent jurisdiction, a court has jurisdiction over a case even if a prior ongoing case concerns the same subject matter until a party files a proper motion to stay the second action or a separate pleading requesting relief. WHEREAS, U.S. Bank, N.A., as Trustee of the Thornburg Mortgage Securities Trust 2007-2 ("USB") and Ocean Towers Housing Corporation ("OTHC") entered into a Settlement Agreement and Release ("Agreement") dated January 8, 2020 for the purpose of resolving by compromise settlement all claims, liabilities, and disputes between them relating to . The court recognized that Stone might have qualified for the privilege if he had made his statements in a letter to another interested party, but it determined that posting a statement on the Internet does not prove the required intent to reach a specific interested party. In 2015, an HOA shareholder filed a derivative complaint against Spahi and his alleged alter egos and co-conspirators, alleging breach of his duties as director and fraud on the HOA. The Ocean Tower project was developed by Coastal Constructors Southwest Ventures, a subsidiary of Zachry Construction. 2022-02-14, California Courts Of Appeal | Other | The Isens did not have a good faith belief their statements about the Spahis were true or accurate, but either knew the statements were false when made or willfully and wantonly disregarded the truth.. All to prevent us from getting approval for the original foreclosed unit. 0000006486 00000 n Since section 128.7(g) explicitly exempts discovery responses from its scope, a request for sanctions for such conduct is not well taken. 0000184153 00000 n 2020-12-03, Los Angeles County Superior Courts | Other | Court: Third Circuit New Jersey US District Court for the District of New Jersey. Code of Civ. I also question the length to diameter ratio, it is pretty slender (95/1.33 = 71). The HOA filed a fifth amended complaint (5AC) in the original action on October 16, 2019. In July 2008 the developers filed a $125,000,000 lawsuit against Raba-Kistner geotechnical engineers and the structural engineer and the general contractor Zachary Construction. Paragraph 2 of the complaint does not violate ;128.7, even if plaintiff proved Bainbridge has no agents, employees, servants, officers, directors or shareholders. 0000002573 00000 n ] Mycogen Corp. v. Monsanto Co. (2002) 28 Cal.4th 888, 891. Walk to the Third Street Promenade and all the best that Santa Monica has to offer," says one real estate agents website, which lists available units at 2.5 million dollars and upif(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[250,250],'smobserved_com-medrectangle-4','ezslot_8',119,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-smobserved_com-medrectangle-4-0');if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[250,250],'smobserved_com-medrectangle-4','ezslot_9',119,'0','1'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-smobserved_com-medrectangle-4-0_1'); .medrectangle-4-multi-119{border:none !important;display:block !important;float:none !important;line-height:0px;margin-bottom:15px !important;margin-left:auto !important;margin-right:auto !important;margin-top:15px !important;max-width:100% !important;min-height:250px;min-width:250px;padding:0;text-align:center !important;}. Beginning in 2016, a series of lawsuits were filed concerning a 56-story condominium tower, colloquially referred to as "San Francisco's Leaning Tower," which has vertically moved more than 16 inches and is tilting as much as 20 inches. Nope! In a hearing conducted on June 13, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Lisa Hart Cole said that she was inclined to appoint a receiver. Westside Today If you do not agree with these terms, then do not use our website and/or services. Plaintiff argues defendant violated Cal. The court also explicitly rejected the "interest" privilege, which Stone argued had not been addressed in the trial court. Finally, plaintiff argues defendant wrongfully designated Omar Spahi as Windsors PMQ and made false representations in interrogatory responses. DUE TO THE ONGOING COVID-19 PANDEMIC, PARTIES AND COUNSEL ARE STRONGLY ENCOURAGED TO AVOID IN-PERSON APPEARANCES AND TO APPEAR REMOTELY. Investors sue developer of 2 planned Honolulu condo towers If you are interested, please contact us for more details. jakarta residence implosion 2009 dimulai.. A $125 million lawsuit over the failed . Proc. ], Punitive damages may not be granted in an action based on breach of contract, even if the defendants breach was willful or fraudulent., Michael Eggenberger, a member of the New York State Bar, applies for admission, Pursuant to California Rules of Court 9.40, an application for appearance. The notice of related cases was denied without prejudice. ocean tower lawsuit outcome ] Cal. Judge Will Appoint Receiver Over Ocean Towers - Santa Monica Observer We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners. Spahi previously demurred to the First Amended Complaint on the grounds that it was based on the same primary right as the 2015 action. [5][6] The proposed fixes would have the garage beams separated from the tower, and new columns to be placed under the beams. and the proceeding . Defendants argue plaintiff was aware of defendants alleged fraudulent scheme by May 2015 at the latest. Enjoy luxury . 0000043094 00000 n Copyright 2007-22 Digital Media Law Project and respective authors. GRANTED. The owner of several units in the Ocean Towers residential complex near Palisades Park was given the green light to continue with his lawsuit against a real estate investment firm, a California appeals court ruled earlier this month. I'm happy to meet with you in person to discuss all the relevant facts. SMart (Santa Monica Architects for a Responsible Tomorrow) Last week's column was Part 1. Ingos Kevin Bludsos New Barbecue Location Will Be 1.5 Miles Away From the Pier. We are looking for contributing authors with expertise in media law, intellectual property, First Amendment, and other related fields to join us as guest bloggers. South Padre Island's Ocean Tower Highrise Condo To Be Imploded Courts determining whether a court has exclusive concurrent jurisdiction apply an expansive subject matter test which considers whether the two actions arise from the same transaction. Plant Insulation Co. v. Fireboard Corp. (1990) 224 Cal.App.3d 781, 789. The DMLP was a project of the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society from 2007 to 2014. ocean tower lawsuit outcome. 54 0 obj <>stream Central Tower Building1424-4th Street, Suite 310Santa Monica, CA 90401[emailprotected], Powered by ROAR Online Publication Software from Lions Light Corporation She did not make any such comments about misappropriation of funds. Who knows, right now all i can say is that a geotechnical report for a project of this magnitude is usually written by one engineer and reviewed by another more senior engineer. Jones Day represented Transbay Joint Powers Authority ("TJPA"), one of the primary parties in the Millennium Tower litigation, which is one of the highest profile litigation matters in the United States.