In the case of Arthur Tsatryan versus Steven Fernandez and others, filed in the Court of Appeal of the State of California, Second Appellate District, Division Four (case ID: B326148), a modification order was issued on April 30, 2024. The lawsuit revolves around a family court dissolution judgment from May 2015 that Arthur Tsatryan has repeatedly challenged.
Arthur Tsatryan represented himself in this case against three attorneys who had represented his ex-wife, Polina Tsatryan, in their divorce proceedings: Steven Fernandez, Maya Shulman, and David Kozich. The complaint centered on the trial court's decision to grant each defendant's special motion to strike all causes of action under Code of Civil Procedure section 425.16 (anti-SLAPP statute).
The dispute stemmed from a judgment in May 2015 that declared the former marital residence as community property. However, after discovering Arthur had breached his fiduciary duties by transferring security interests in the property to friends and relatives, the court awarded Polina full ownership of the property.
The plaintiff sought reversal of the trial court's order granting each defendant's special motion to strike all causes of action under Code of Civil Procedure section 425.16 (anti-SLAPP statute). However, he failed to carry his burden on appeal demonstrating that the court erred in granting these motions. Consequently, during this appeal process, Fernandez filed a motion declaring Arthur a vexatious litigant subject to prefiling approval for any new litigation.
Justices Zukin, Collins and Mori all concur that Mr. Tsatryan's contention that the court abused its discretion in denying his request for oral testimony at the hearing and erred in anti-SLAPP motions were false. The lower courts motions are affirmed. The justices also declared that the plaintiff is a vexatious litigant and will need prefiling approval for all new litigation.