Response deadline (2025): All CA residential UD = 10 court days to respond. Add mailing time if served by mail.
Service defects: Check POS, substituted service steps, mailing follow-up, and addresses. Bad service → Motion to Quash.
Notice defects: Amounts, dates, cure language, who/where to pay, signatures, and delivery method must match statute/ordinance.
Habitability: Photos, texts, work orders, inspector reports, rent abatement math lined up with Civil Code.
Local rules: LA/RC/Just Cause overlays can nuke a case. Always check city/RC regs first.
Discovery pace: UD discovery is short-fuse. Use Form Rogs (UD), RFPs, RFAs immediately.
Zak’s disco play: “I like to serve discovery on the last possible day, locks their responses due mid-trial, and if they retaliate with disco, they’re late.”
Settlement levers: Keys for cash, clean record stip, no negative reference, fee waivers.
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