Clear View Enterprises v. Beauvil et al

Filing 55

ORDER signed by Senior District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller on 3/5/2025 GRANTING 45 Motion to Amend Answer and SETTING dates as follows: Amended pleading due within 7 days; fact discovery due by 5/15/2025; expert disclosures completed by 6/17/2025; rebuttal expert witnesses due by 7/15/2025; all expert discovery shall be completed by 8/15/2025; Dispositive motions due by 10/15/2024. (Deputy Clerk VLK)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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Clearview Enterprises, LLC,

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Plaintiff,

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No. 2:22-cv-01119-KJM-JDP
ORDER

v.
Elizabeth Raquel Beauvil et al.,

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Defendants.

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Clearview Enterprises, LLC, claims defendants Elizabeth Raquel Beauvil, Global Empire

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Holdings, Lawrence Albano, and Chelsea Jones defrauded it by selling Clearview fake leads for

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making case referrals to law firms. Albano and Global now move to amend their answer to add

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affirmative defenses and add crossclaims against Beauvil and against newly joined defendants.

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For the reasons stated below, the court grants the motion and sua sponte amends the scheduling

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order.

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I.

BACKGROUND

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Clearview Enterprises is a California-based limited liability company that markets

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referrals to lawyers, chiefly for mass tort litigation. See Compl. ¶ 8, ECF No. 1. As alleged in the

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operative complaint, in 2021, Clearview began a relationship with Albano and Global to acquire

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leads. Id. ¶ 9. Over the course of their business relationship, Clearview paid Global roughly $1.5

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million for leads. Id. ¶ 23. By early 2022, Clearview realized the leads Global had provided were
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fake and demanded a refund. Id. ¶ 22. Albano refunded Clearview just under $500,000. Id. ¶ 22.

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The other million was in the hands of Beauvil, identified in the complaint as a “Team Leader,”

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who refused to refund any money. Id. ¶¶ 22, 24. Clearview filed suit in this court in June 2022,

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alleging Beauvil, Global, Albano, and another employee of Global, Chelsea Jones, defrauded it

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by providing fake leads. See generally id.

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Nicholas Webb initially represented all defendants but moved to withdraw from the case

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in August 2023, declaring that while preparing defendants for depositions, he became aware of

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conflicts of interest posed by representing defendants concurrently. See Mot. Withdraw as

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Counsel at 2, ECF No. 29. The court granted the motion. See Order (Sept. 25, 2023),

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ECF No. 35. A new attorney—Anthony Chalifoux, see Stip. (Dec. 5, 2024), ECF No. 53—now

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represents Global and Albano while Beauvil proceeds pro se, see ECF No. 40. On November 2,

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2023, the court issued a scheduling order declaring parties could not amend their pleadings or join

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additional parties after May 15, 2024, without leave of court and good cause having been shown.

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ECF No. 40 (citing Fed. R. Civ. P. 16(b); Johnson v. Mammoth Recreations, Inc., 975 F.2d 604,

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609–10 (9th Cir. 1992)).

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On October 11, 2024, Global and Albano moved to amend their answer. Mot., ECF

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No. 45. They seek to add affirmative defenses and crossclaims against Beauvil. See generally id.

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Global and Albano also seek to add two defendants to the crossclaims, Tanpri Media and Roes

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1–25. See id. Ex. B. at 43. Global and Albano claim they had an oral contract with Beauvil and

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Tanpri Media—where Beauvil served as CEO—for Beauvil to provide referrals to Global. Id.

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¶ 15. As alleged in the proposed crossclaims, the referrals Beauvil provided were fraudulent;

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Global and Albano passed them on to Clearview Enterprises, sparking this litigation. See

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generally id. Clearview Enterprises does not oppose the amended complaint provided in part that

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Global and Albano “use their best efforts to be ready for trial by September 2025.” Stip. at 2.

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Beauvil has not responded to the motion and the court has recently ordered her to update her

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address with the court by March 10, 2025. See Mail Returned (Jan. 8, 2025).

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II.

ANALYSIS
Parties can only modify a scheduling order upon a showing of good cause. Fed. R. Civ. P.

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16(b). “The good cause standard primarily considers the diligence of the party seeking the

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amendment.” Kamal v. Eden Creamery, LLC, 88 F.4th 1268, 1277 (9th Cir. 2023) (internal

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marks and citations omitted). “Although the existence or degree of prejudice to the party

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opposing the modification might supply additional reasons to deny a motion, the focus of the

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inquiry is upon the moving party’s reasons for seeking modification.” Id. (internal marks and

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citations omitted). “Only after the moving party has demonstrated diligence under Rule 16 does

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the court apply the standard under Rule 15 to determine whether the amendment [is] proper.”

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Kang v. Nationstar Mortg., LLC, No. C23-5106, 2024 WL 2274316, at *1 (W.D. Wash. May 20,

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2024) (quoting Hood v. Hartford Life & Accident Ins. Co., 567 F. Supp. 2d 1221, 1224 (E.D. Cal.

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2008) (alterations in original)). A court may also amend the scheduling order sua sponte. See

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Martins v. Josephson, No. 18-1731, 2022 WL 16924109, at *2 (S.D. Cal. Nov. 13, 2022)

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(collecting authority).

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Under Rule 15(a)(2) courts may grant litigants leave to amend “when justice so requires.”

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Courts may deny leave to amend only when they find the litigants have engaged in undue delay,

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are attempting to amend in bad faith, have repeatedly failed to cure deficiencies in their pleadings,

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would unduly prejudice other parties to the litigation, or when their proposed amendments would

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be futile. See Foman v. Davis, 371 U.S. 178, 182 (1962). Under Rule 20, a court may allow the

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permissive joinder of defendants provided the claims against them arise “out of the same

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transaction, occurrence, or series of transactions or occurrences.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 20(a)(2). Under

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Rule 13(g), a party may make a crossclaim against another party if the “claim arises out of the

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transaction or occurrence that is the subject matter of the original action . . . .” Fed. R. Civ. P.

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13(g). Under Rule 13(h), additional parties may be joined to a crossclaim provided Rule 19 or

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Rule 20 is satisfied. Fed. R. Civ. P. 13(h).

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Albano and Global provide three reasons for the court to find good cause to allow them to

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amend their answer and file a crossclaim: (1) in discovery they identified new affirmative

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defenses and had potential crossclaims against Beauvil, see Mot. at 6–8, (2) their proposed
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amendments are late because they spent a considerable amount of time attempting to settle with

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Clearview and have tried unsuccessfully to contact Beauvil, see id. at 7, and (3) Beauvil and the

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newly joined defendants will not be prejudiced because the case is still in its infancy, and they

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will have time to engage in discovery, see id. at 8–9.

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The court finds Albano and Global’s first two reasons persuasive in showing their

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diligence under Rule 16 and the court finds the proposed crossclaims arise out of the same

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transaction as the subject matter of the original action, satisfying both Rule 13(g) and Rule 20.

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Because Rule 20 is satisfied, the court finds Rule 13(h) is also satisfied. Tanpri Media may be

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added to Albano and Global’s crossclaim. The court will also add the Roe defendants and Global

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and Albano will have an opportunity through discovery to identify them. See Gillespie v.

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Civiletti, 629 F.2d 637, 642 (9th Cir. 1980). But the court will dismiss such unnamed defendants

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if, absent good cause, they are not served within 90 days of the filing of the amended answer and

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added crossclaim. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 4(m). The court also finds Rule 15 is satisfied because

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Global and Albano do not appear to be acting in bad faith, have not repeatedly failed to cure

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defects in their pleadings, and present plausible crossclaims and affirmative defenses. Further, to

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avoid prejudice to Beauvil and the newly joined defendants, the court sua sponte amends the

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scheduling order to allow for additional time for discovery and for the filing of dispositive

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motions.

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III.

CONCLUSION
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Global and Albano’s motion to amend their answer and add crossclaims is

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granted. Albano and Global are instructed to file their amended pleading within 7

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days.
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In light of this order, the court modifies the scheduling order as follows:

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o Fact discovery shall be completed by 5/15/2025;

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o Expert disclosures shall be completed by 6/17/2025;

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o Rebuttal expert witnesses shall be exchanged by 7/15/2025;

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o All expert discovery shall be completed by 8/15/2025; and

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o All dispositive motions, except for motions for continuances, temporary

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restraining orders or other emergency applications, shall be filed by

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10/15/2025, and noticed for a hearing on the earliest available law and

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motion date in accordance with Local Rule 302(c). Except as otherwise

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provided in this Order, no further joinder of parties or amendments to

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pleadings is permitted without leave of court, good cause having been

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shown. See Fed. R. Civ. P 16(b); Johnson v. Mammoth Recreations, Inc.,

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975 F.2d 604, 609–10 (9th Cir. 1992).

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This order resolves ECF No. 45.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.

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DATED: March 5, 2025.

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