Protective Life Insurance Company v. Alvarez et al

Filing 33

DEFAULT JUDGMENT and ORDER Granting 31 Motion for Default Judgment and Release of Life Insurance Proceeds. It is hereby Ordered that Default Judgment is entered against Defendants Ana Berta Alvarez, Monica Figueroa, and Monica Figueroa as Admini strator of the Estate of Teresa Cabrales Alvarez, and in favor of Theresa Hawkins as Administrator of the Estate of David Alvarez. The Court finds that Theresa Hawkins as Administrator of the Estate of David Alvarez is entitled to all proceeds of t he life insurance policy pertaining to decedent David Alvarez in this action, and on deposit with this Court in this action. The Clerk of Court shall release the remaining $97,661.16, including all interest, to Defendant Theresa Hawkins as Administrator of the Estate of David Alvarez. Signed by Judge Michael M. Anello on 3/21/2013. (cc: Financial Dept) (leh)

1
2
3
4
5
6
7

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

8

SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

9
10
11

PROTECTIVE LIFE INSURANCE
COMPANY,

12

vs.

CASE NO. 12-CV-1749-MMA-DHB
ORDER GRANTING MOTION
FOR DEFAULT JUDGMENT
AND RELEASE OF LIFE
INSURANCE PROCEEDS

Plaintiff,

13
14

[Doc. No. 31]

ANA BERTA ALVAREZ, et al.,

15

Defendants.

16
17

This matter is now before the Court on Defendant Theresa Hawkins’1 Motion

18

for Default Judgment. [Doc. No. 31.] For the following reasons, the Court

19

GRANTS the motion.

20
21

DISCUSSION
“‘The general rule of law is that upon default the factual allegations of the

22

complaint, except those relating to the amount of damages, will be taken as true.’”

23

TeleVideo Sys., Inc. v. Heidenthal, 826 F.2d 915, 917-18 (9th Cir. 1987) (quoting

24

Geddes v. United Fin. Group, 559 F.2d 557, 560 (9th Cir. 1977)). However, a party

25

who obtains an entry of default is not entitled to default judgment as a matter of

26

right. See Warner Bros. Entm’t Inc. v. Caridi, 346 F. Supp. 2d 1068, 1071 (C.D.

27
28

1

All references to Theresa Hawkins in this Order relate to her as the Administrator of the Estate
of David Alvarez.
-1-

12-CV-1749

1

Cal. 2004). Default judgments are disfavored; cases should be decided on the merits

2

if possible. See In re Roxford Foods, Inc., 12 F.3d 875, 879 (9th Cir. 1993). Thus,

3

“any doubts as to the propriety of a default are usually resolved against the party

4

seeking a default judgment.” VonGrabe v. Sprint PCS, 312 F. Supp. 2d 1313, 1319

5

(S.D. Cal. 2004) (citing Pena v. Seguros La Comercial, S.A., 770 F.2d 811, 814 (9th

6

Cir. 1985)).

7

In determining whether to grant default judgment, the Court considers the

8

following factors: (1) the possibility of prejudice to the moving party, (2) the merits

9

of the moving party’s substantive claim, (3) the sufficiency of the moving party’s

10

claims, (4) the sum of money at stake in the action, (5) the possibility of a dispute

11

concerning material facts, (6) whether the default was due to excusable neglect, and

12

(7) the strong policy underlying the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure favoring

13

decisions on the merits. Warner Bros., 346 F. Supp. 2d at 1071-72 (quoting Eitel v.

14

McCool, 782 F.2d 1470, 1471-72 (9th Cir. 1986)).

15

Here, the Court finds that the majority of the factors weigh in favor of

16

granting Hawkins’ motion for default judgment against the absent Defendants. First,

17

Defendant Hawkins has properly litigated her claim and will be prejudiced if the

18

entry of judgment is delayed. The Court also finds that Defendant Hawkins’ Answer

19

sufficiently alleges substantive claims which concern a significant amount of money.

20

Further, in light of the fact that Defendants Ana Berta Alvarez and Monica Figueroa

21

(individually and as Administrator of the Estate of Teresa Cabrales Alvarez) have

22

not appeared in this case, there is no possibility of a dispute over the material facts

23

and there is no indication that the default was due to their excusable neglect. This

24

Court therefore finds that factors (1) through (6) weigh in favor of granting

25

Hawkins’ motion. The only factor that weighs against granting the motion is the

26

strong policy favoring decisions on the merits. Having considered all of the relevant

27

factors, this Court determines that default judgment in favor of Defendant Hawkins

28

is warranted.
-2-

12-CV-1749

CONCLUSION AND ORDER

1
2

Based on the foregoing,

3

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED THAT:

4

(1) Default Judgment is entered against Defendants Ana Berta Alvarez,

5

Monica Figueroa, and Monica Figueroa as Administrator of the Estate of Teresa

6

Cabrales Alvarez, and in favor of Theresa Hawkins as Administrator of the Estate of

7

David Alvarez. The Court finds that Theresa Hawkins as Administrator of the

8

Estate of David Alvarez is entitled to all proceeds of the life insurance policy

9

pertaining to decedent David Alvarez in this action, and on deposit with this Court in

10
11

this action.
(2) On or about July 17, 2012, Plaintiff deposited with the Clerk of Court the

12

sum of $103,821.92, which represented the face value of the life insurance policy

13

plus interest. [Doc. No. 4.] On February 11, 2013, the Court discharged Plaintiff

14

Protective Life Insurance Company, and awarded Plaintiff $6,160.76 in costs and

15

reasonable attorney fees. [Doc. No. 27.] The Clerk of Court shall release the

16

remaining $97,661.16, including all interest, to Defendant Theresa Hawkins as

17

Administrator of the Estate of David Alvarez.

18
19
20
21

(3) The Clerk of Court shall enter final judgment accordingly and terminate
this case.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
DATED: March 21, 2013

22
23
24

Hon. Michael M. Anello
United States District Judge

25
26
27
28
-3-

12-CV-1749