H.D. Arnaiz, Ltd. v. County of San Joaquin

In H.D. Arnaiz, Ltd. v. County of San Joaquin (2002) 96 Cal.App.4th 1357, the trial court granted the plaintiff relief from a voluntary dismissal, and the appellate court found no abuse of discretion. The plaintiff brought the action for breach of an option to lease. (Ibid.) But then the plaintiff exercised the option to lease and tried to negotiate with the defendant for development of the leased property. (Ibid.) The litigation apparently interfered with these negotiations, and the plaintiff dismissed the action without prejudice. (Ibid.) It eventually moved to vacate the dismissal based on mistake of fact. It attested to the mistaken belief that if it dismissed the action, the defendant would cooperate by negotiating with it for development of the property. (Id. at p. 1361.) Instead, the defendant had terminated the lease. (Ibid.) The issue in the case was whether the "mistake" was truly a mistake of fact, or just a poor tactical decision that did not justify relief. (Id. at pp. 1368-1369.)