Yolo County Department of Child Support Services v. Myers
248 Cal. App. 4th 42
| Cal. Ct. App. | 2016Background
- In 1989 DCSS filed to establish paternity and obtain child support against Charles Myers; a default judgment was entered September 7, 1989, signed by Judge Stevens.
- Process server attempted personal service at an address in Carmichael and effected substitute service on Myers’s father; USPS had verified Myers’s Carmichael address shortly before filing.
- Myers met with an attorney three days after substitute service, did not answer the complaint, but later appeared in 1993 and 1998 on child-support/custody matters.
- In 2013 Myers moved to vacate the 1989 default judgment, asserting defective substitute service, extrinsic fraud in the proof of service, and judicial bias; he also sought return of monies and injunctive relief halting collections.
- Commissioner Umanzio (sitting as judge pro tem) denied Myers’s motion to vacate, denied reconsideration, and denied disqualification and injunctive relief; Myers appealed multiple orders.
- The trial court found Myers’s evidence insufficient to rebut the presumption of proper service, that he had actual notice in 1989, and that statutory/factual grounds did not justify equitable vacatur or disqualification relief.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (DCSS) | Defendant's Argument (Myers) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Validity of substitute service | Service was proper; proof of service presumptively valid | Substitute service was invalid because Myers did not live at the address; proof of service was false (extrinsic fraud) | Court: Myers failed to rebut presumption; substantial evidence supports service; no extrinsic-fraud showing; motion to vacate properly denied |
| Timeliness / equitable relief to vacate default | Equitable relief unavailable because Myers had actual notice and longstanding participation; statutory time limits and finality favor denial | Gorham permits equitable vacatur where false proof of service voids judgment; relief should be available despite statutory limits | Court: Gorham’s unique facts (false proof of service proved) not present here; equitable vacatur not warranted; denial not an abuse of discretion |
| Judge Stevens’s disqualification and effect on judgment | No relief; Code Civ. Proc. §170.4 allows disqualified judges to sign purely default matters | Default judgment void because Judge Stevens should have been disqualified; deprivation of impartial judge violates due process | Court: Even if disqualification merited, statute permits disqualified judge to hear purely default matters; no constitutional violation shown |
| Recusal/disqualification of Commissioner Umanzio and injunctive relief | Commissioner’s rulings were proper; statutory disqualification rulings are non-appealable; DCSS has standing to collect | Commissioner biased; orders void for lack of impartiality; collections should be enjoined | Court: Statutory disqualification rulings not appealable; no due-process showing of bias; injunctive relief denied; orders affirmed |
Key Cases Cited
- County of San Diego v. Gorham, 186 Cal.App.4th 1215 (Cal. Ct. App.) (equitable vacatur available when judgment obtained on false proof of service that deprives party of meaningful notice)
- Mathews v. Eldridge, 424 U.S. 319 (U.S. 1976) (due process requires meaningful opportunity to be heard)
- Beck Development Co. v. Southern Pacific Transportation Co., 44 Cal.App.4th 1160 (Cal. Ct. App.) (trial court may reject uncontradicted testimony if rational basis exists)
- People v. Brown, 6 Cal.4th 322 (Cal. 1993) (statutory schemes limiting review of disqualification rulings; writ relief appropriate)