Q: Can the Court of Appeal sua sponte declare a vexatious litigant?
A: You betcha. See yesterday's Kouvabina v. Veltman:
- "Kouvabina contends appeals do not constitute “litigation” within the meaning of section 391. California courts have consistently held to the contrary."
- "Kouvabina next argues her appeals do not constitute “litigation” within the meaning of section 391 because they “arose from [her] efforts to defend herself against Veltman’s affirmative claims.” For various reasons, we disagree."
- "To the extent she implies the vexatious litigant statutes do not apply — or apply differently — to dissolution matters, we disagree. The Legislature could have exempted family law matters — as it exempted small claims actions in section 391(b)(1) — but it did not. To the contrary, Family Code section 210 explicitly provides that the vexatious litigant statutes apply to family law proceedings."
See Prof. Martin's take here.