Appealability, Sanctions: 4/1 DCA Holds In Unpublished Opinion That Interlocutory Order Denying CCP § 128.7 Sanctions Is Not Appealable

It Is Appealable From A Final Judgment, Although There Is A Split In DCA Thinking On The Issue.

            In Arteaga v. California Restaurants, Inc., Case No. D082258 (4^th Dist., Div. 1 Oct. 17, 2023) (unpublished), plaintiff filed a CCP § 128.7 sanctions motion which was denied in a class action case, prompting an appeal.  The 4/1 DCA dismissed the appeal, following the lead of Longobardo v. Avco Corp., 93 Cal.App.5^th 429, 434 (2023) by concluding that an interlocutory order not directing the payment of money or performance of an act is not appealable under the collateral order doctrine.  Rather, it is appealable from a subsequent final judgment.  The appellate court did observe that Muller v. Fresno Community Hospital & Medical Center, 172 Cal.App.4^th 887, 905 (2009) held otherwise under peculiar facts, but agreed with Longobardo’s analysis of state supreme court precedent in this area.  Here, the parties reached a settlement, and the lower court issued a final judgment, with plaintiff eschewing to appeal from the final judgment.