Demurrer Law In California

What Is a Demurrer?

A demurrer in California is a legal objection to a pleading, typically used to challenge the sufficiency of the opposing party’s complaint or response. It asserts that even if all the allegations in the pleading are true, they do not present a valid legal claim or defense.

Purpose

• Testing Sufficiency: A demurrer is primarily used to test whether the opposing party’s pleading states a valid cause of action or defense.
• Legal Deficiency: It focuses on legal issues rather than factual disputes, arguing that the pleading fails to meet legal standards.

Types of Demurrers

• General Demurrer: This challenges the entire pleading, claiming it is insufficient as a matter of law. Common grounds include:
  • Lack of jurisdiction
  • Failure to state a cause of action
  • Ambiguity or uncertainty
• Special Demurrer: This targets specific defects, such as:
  • Misjoinder or nonjoinder of parties
  • Lack of clarity or specificity
  • Failure to plead facts supporting the cause of action

Process

• Filing: A demurrer is filed with the court, usually along with a memorandum of points and authorities explaining the legal basis for the objection.
• Notice: The opposing party must be given notice of the demurrer and the scheduled hearing date.
• Hearing: The court holds a hearing where both parties can present their arguments. The judge will consider the demurrer based on the legal issues raised.

Outcomes

• Sustained: If the court agrees with the demurrer, the court may sustain it, and often allows the opposing party a chance to amend their pleading to address the deficiencies.
• Overruled: If the court finds the pleading sufficient, the court will overrule the demurrer, and the case will proceed.

Importance

• Efficient Resolution: Demurrers can lead to a quicker resolution of cases by dismissing insufficient claims early in the litigation process.
• Clarifying Issues: They help clarify legal issues and set the stage for the subsequent stages of the case.

Examples

• The plaintiff sues for breach of contract because he wants money paid back. But, the plaintiff never alleged in the complaint that there was actually an agreement to pay the money back. In this case, the defendant can demur the complaint on the basis that the plaintiff failed to identify the existence of a contract which obligated the defendant to pay it back. In opposing the demurrer, if the plaintiff can show the court that the complaint can be amended to allege the existence of a contract, without contradicting any of the other original allegations, the court will likely sustain the demurrer with leave to amend, and allow the plaintiff to amend the complaint to allege that the money was given as a loan under an agreement.

• On the other hand, if the plaintiff concedes that there was never an actual contract (and the money was given as a gift), then there is no way the plaintiff can amend the complaint to allege a contract existed, even if the defendant admits he received the money. The demurrer will likely be sustained without leave to amend.

• Even though the demurrer to the cause of action for breach of contract may be sustained, the plaintiff might have also alleged other causes of action, for example, based on equity. These types of claims seek to recover the money on other legal bases. For example, common counts, such as money had and received, are often alleged in conjunction, and do not require alleging or proving that a contract or agreement existed.

• In a claim for retaliatory termination, the plaintiff needs to allege that she engaged in (1) a protected activity and (2) was terminated as an adverse employment action. If the plaintiff alleges she was fired for “no reason”, the defendant might demur on the basis that the plaintiff failed to identify a protected activity that she engaged in, such as making a complaint for racial discrimination. In other words, the plaintiff failed to allege any facts that, if assumed to be true, suggest that her termination was in retaliation for something she did, i.e., make a complaint.

• In a claim for harassment, the plaintiff may fail to allege that she was a member of any protected status, such as her sex or race. For example, if the plaintiff claims she was harassed at work for being the only one that wears blue shoes every day, that is not a valid claim for harassment.

• In each of these examples, the defendant is not challenging the truth of the facts (who, what, when, where) that the plaintiff alleged in the complaint. Instead, the defendant is arguing, that even if the “who, what, when, where” statements are all true, there is no actionable cause of action, or potential claim that may be pursued under the law. Basically, the demurrer is saying, “So what if that happened? That does not constitute to a legal claim.” 

Conclusion

Demurrers are routinely filed in civil lawsuits but can be a powerful tool if used properly. Ensuring a complaint can withstand demurrer allows a plaintiff to proceed with the lawsuit. Conversely, a demurrer might be used to eliminate a meritless lawsuit altogether.

For a confidential consultation with an experienced attorney, contact Litigation, P.C., at 424-284-2401 or online to learn about your legal options. We routinely handle matters throughout SoCal.