Whitall v. Gutierrez

Opinion

RAYMOND RICHARD WHITALL, Case No. 18-cv-01376-CRB

Plaintiff,

ORDER DENYING MOTION FOR v. JUDGMENT ON THE PLEADINGS

J. CABALLERO, et al., Defendants.

Defendant Davina Gutierrez moves for judgment on the pleadings as to Plaintiff Raymond Richard Whitall’s request for punitive damages. MJP (dkt. 241). This motion is procedurally improper. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(c) does not authorize motions for judgment on the pleadings with respect to parts of claims. See BBL, Inc. v. City of Angola, 809 F.3d 317, 325 (7th Cir. 2015); Gunaratna v. Dr. Dennis Gross Skincare, LLC, No. CV 20-2311-MWF, 2024 WL 650422, at *1–2 (C.D. Cal. Jan. 26, 2024) (collecting Ninth Circuit cases). Unlike Defendants’ prior Rule 12(c) motion, which sought to dismiss entire claims, Gutierrez’s instant motion seeks only to dismiss a portion of Whitall’s claims against her. See MJP Order (dkt. 235) at 1. As for Gutierrez’s belated request to strike Whitall’s request for punitive damages pursuant to Rule 12(f), see Reply (dkt. 245), that is not properly before the Court because it was raised for the first time in a reply brief. See Zamani v. Carnes, 491 F.3d 990, 997 (9th Cir. 2007). The Court therefore DENIES Gutierrez’s motion. Dated: April 23, 2025