Tentative ruling issued by Judge Frederick HORN on Feb. 01, 2017 in Orange County, CA - Case no: xxxxxCJC

TENTATIVE RULING (both motions): Motion No. 1: The demurrer by defendants Daniel Ross Feldstein and Drouin Realty to the Seventh Cause of Action in the First Amended Complaint filed by plaintiffs Ronald Contreras, Elia Campos-Campos and Joel Penaloza is overruled.
Defendants contend that there are no factual allegations to support the Seventh Cause of Action for false advertising under Business & Professions Code §17500. However, plaintiffs have clearly alleged that the apartment that they rented, while represented to be, and appearing to be, a 2 bedroom apartment, was in fact a 1 bedroom apartment that had illegally and unsafely been converted. (FAC, ¶74.) Defendants claim that plaintiffs’ allegation that they “observed that it was a 2 bedroom apartment” is an admission to the contrary. This argument lacks merit. Under Business & Professions Code §17500, a statement need not be false in order to be actionable; it can also be misleading. Even a “perfectly true statement couche….....