Filed 6/23/11

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF CALIFORNIA

JOSEPH L. SHALANT, )

)

Plaintiff and Appellant, )

) S182629

v. )

) Ct.App. 2/1 B211932

THOMAS V. GIRARDI et al., )

) Los Angeles County Super. Ct.

Defendants and Respondents. ) No. BC363843

____________________________________)

)

JOSE CASTRO, )

)

Plaintiff and Respondent, )

)

v. )

) Ct.App. 2/1 B214302

JOSEPH L. SHALANT, )

) Los Angeles County Super. Ct.

Defendant and Appellant. ) No. BC366214

____________________________________)

Plaintiff Joseph L. Shalant, having previously been declared a vexatious 

litigant (Code Civ. Proc., § 391, subd. (b)),1 was subject to a prefiling order, 

issued under section 391.7, barring him ―from filing any new litigation‖ (id., subd. 

(a)) in propria persona in a California court without leave of the court‘s presiding 

judge. He filed the present litigation through counsel, but lost his representation 

 

1 All further statutory references are to the Code of Civil Procedure unless 

otherwise specified.
2

while the action was pending. On defendants‘ motions, the trial court dismissed 

Shalant‘s complaint on the ground he had not complied with section 391.7. The 

Court of Appeal reversed, holding section 391.7 applies only to actions filed in 

propria persona by vexatious litigants. 

We agree with the Court of Appeal. By its unambiguous terms, section 

391.7, subdivision (a) authorizes only a ―prefiling‖ order prohibiting a vexatious 

litigant from ―filing‖ new litigation without prior permission, and only when the 

litigant is unrepresented by counsel. Subdivision (c) of the section provides that 

the court clerk shall not ―file‖ any such litigation without an order from the 

presiding judge permitting the ―filing,‖ and if the court clerk mistakenly ―files‖ the 

litigation without such an order, the litigation is to be dismissed. Section 391.7‘s 

dismissal provision did not apply here because Shalant was not in propria persona 

when he filed the litigation.

This interpretation, which is compelled by the statutory language, does not 

leave a defendant without protection against a vexatious litigant‘s continued 

pursuit of an action initially filed through counsel. In this situation, a defendant in 

the pending litigation may move for an order requiring the vexatious litigant 

plaintiff to furnish security. (§ 391.1.) If security is ordered but not furnished, the 

action is to be dismissed. (§ 391.4.)

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

In 2002, in an action unrelated to this one, the superior court entered an 

order declaring Shalant, an attorney, to be a vexatious litigant as defined in section 

391. The court further entered a prefiling order under section 391.7, prohibiting 

him from ―filing any new litigation in propria persona in the courts of California 

without approval of the presiding judge of the court in which the action is filed.‖ 

In May 2005, the State Bar Court recommended that Shalant be disbarred and 
3

placed him on inactive status. This court ordered Shalant disbarred in December 

2005.

On December 22, 2006, Shalant, through Attorney L‘Tanya M. Butler, filed 

the present action against Thomas V. Girardi and National Union Fire Insurance 

Company (National Union). The action arose from Shalant and Girardi‘s 

representation of Jose Castro and his wife in a personal injury suit in which 

National Union insured the defendant. When the personal injury case settled, 

Girardi paid Shalant $745,000 of the proceeds pursuant to a fee-splitting 

agreement, but Shalant alleges he was owed an additional $27,745 in fees and 

costs. 

In May 2007, Attorney James T. Biesty substituted in for Butler as 

Shalant‘s attorney. With the exception of one month when Shalant represented 

himself, Biesty represented Shalant in this action until March 2008, when Butler 

returned as attorney of record. On June 26, 2008, however, Butler applied, over 

Shalant‘s objection, for permission to withdraw as counsel, citing ―an irremediable 

breakdown in the attorney/client relationship.‖ The trial court granted Butler‘s 

application on July 15, 2008.

With Shalant now acting in propria persona, Girardi and National Union 

moved to dismiss his complaint against them under section 391.7. The trial court 

gave Shalant until September 14, 2008, to retain counsel or obtain permission 

from the presiding judge to proceed in propria persona, and set a hearing on the 

motions to dismiss for September 18. On that date, the court granted the motions, 

finding that Shalant had ―failed to rectify his violation under section 391.7.‖ The 

court entered judgment for National Union, and Shalant (represented by counsel) 

appealed. 
4

The Court of Appeal reversed the judgment and directed the superior court 

to deny the motions to dismiss. We granted Girardi and National Union‘s joint 

petition for review, which raised only the issue of dismissal under section 391.7. 

DISCUSSION

The vexatious litigant statutes (§§ 391-391.7) are designed to curb misuse 

of the court system by those persistent and obsessive litigants who, repeatedly 

litigating the same issues through groundless actions, waste the time and resources 

of the court system and other litigants. (Bravo v. Ismaj (2002) 99 Cal.App.4th 

211, 220-221.) Sections 391 to 391.6 were enacted in 1963, while section 391.7, 

the section at issue here, was added in 1990. (Stats. 1963, ch. 1471, § 1, pp. 

3038-3039; Stats. 1990, ch. 621, § 3, pp. 3072-3073.)

―Vexatious litigant‖ is defined in section 391, subdivision (b) as a person 

who has, while acting in propria persona, initiated or prosecuted numerous 

meritless litigations, relitigated or attempted to relitigate matters previously 

determined against him or her, repeatedly pursued unmeritorious or frivolous 

tactics in litigation, or who has previously been declared a vexatious litigant in a 

related action. Section 391.1 provides that in any litigation pending in a California 

court, the defendant may move for an order requiring the plaintiff to furnish 

security on the ground the plaintiff is a vexatious litigant and has no reasonable 

probability of prevailing against the moving defendant. The action is stayed 

pending determination of the motion. (§ 391.6.) If, after a hearing, the court finds 

for the defendant on these points, it must order the plaintiff to furnish security ―in 

such amount and within such time as the court shall fix.‖ (§ 391.3.) The 

plaintiff‘s failure to furnish that security is grounds for dismissal. (§ 391.4.)

―In 1990, the Legislature enacted section 391.7 to provide the courts with 

an additional means to counter misuse of the system by vexatious litigants. 

Section 391.7  ̳operates beyond the pending case‘ and authorizes a court to enter a 
5

 ̳prefiling order‘ that prohibits a vexatious litigant from filing any new litigation in 

propria persona without first obtaining permission from the presiding judge. 

(McColm v. Westwood Park Assn. [(1998)] 62 Cal.App.4th [1211,] 1216.) The 

presiding judge may also condition the filing of the litigation upon furnishing 

security as provided in section 391.3. (§ 391.7, subd. (b).)‖ (Bravo v. Ismaj, 

supra, 99 Cal.App.4th at p. 221.)

Section 391.7 did not displace the remedy provided in sections 391.1 to 

391.6 for defendants in pending actions; by its terms it operates ―[i]n addition to 

any other relief provided in this title . . . .‖ (§ 391.7, subd. (a).) Rather, it added a 

powerful new tool designed ―to preclude the initiation of meritless lawsuits and 

their attendant expenditures of time and costs.‖ (Bravo v. Ismaj, supra, 99 

Cal.App.4th at pp. 221-222.) 

Once a person has been declared a vexatious litigant, the court, on its own 

or a party‘s motion, may ―enter a prefiling order which prohibits [the person] from 

filing any new litigation in the courts of this state in propria persona without first 

obtaining leave of the presiding judge of the court where the litigation is proposed 

to be filed.‖ (§ 391.7, subd. (a).) Disobedience of the order is punishable as a 

contempt. (Ibid.) ―The presiding judge shall permit the filing of that litigation 

only if it appears that the litigation has merit and has not been filed for the 

purposes of harassment or delay. The presiding judge may condition the filing of 

the litigation upon the furnishing of security for the benefit of the defendants as 

provided in Section 391.3.‖ (§ 391.7, subd. (b).) Court clerks are directed not to 

file litigation from a vexatious litigant subject to a prefiling order without the 

presiding judge‘s order permitting the filing. If the clerk mistakenly does file the 

action, any party may seek dismissal through a notice that the plaintiff is subject to 

a prefiling order. ―The litigation shall be automatically dismissed unless the 

plaintiff within 10 days of the filing of that notice obtains an order from the 
6

presiding judge permitting the filing of the litigation as set forth in subdivision 

(b).‖ (§ 391.7, subd. (c).) 

As the court in McColm v. Westwood Park Assn., supra, 62 Cal.App.4th at 

page 1216, footnote 4, explained: ―Sections 391.1-391.6 differ from section 391.7 

in some significant ways. Under the former sections, the litigant may proceed 

with the case without showing a reasonable probability of prevailing, but the 

litigant will have to furnish security to proceed if the court finds success 

improbable. Under the latter section, the litigant is barred from filing the action or 

proceeding if success is considered improbable. . . . [¶] Section 391.7‘s extra 

burden upon the vexatious litigant arises because a state court has taken a second 

step in addressing the vexatious litigant problem and has determined that no court 

or adverse party should be burdened by the particular plaintiff‘s meritless 

litigation.‖

To summarize, our vexatious litigant statutes provide courts and 

nonvexatious litigants with two distinct and complementary sets of remedies. In 

pending litigation, a defendant may have the plaintiff declared a vexatious litigant 

and, if the plaintiff has no reasonable probability of prevailing, ordered to furnish 

security. If the plaintiff fails to furnish the security, the action will be dismissed. 

(§§ 391.1-391.6.) In addition, a potential defendant may prevent the vexatious 

litigant plaintiff from filing any new litigation in propria persona by obtaining a 

prefiling order and, if any new litigation is inadvertently permitted to be filed in 

propria persona without the presiding judge‘s permission, may then obtain its 

dismissal. (§ 391.7.)

In the present case, defendants pursued the wrong statutory remedy for the

situation in which they found themselves. Although Shalant is a vexatious litigant 

subject to a prefiling order under section 391.7, he did not violate that order by 

filing the present action through counsel, and the action was therefore not subject 
7

to dismissal as violative of the order. As the Court of Appeal below explained: 

―The prefiling order entered against Shalant (on a form approved by the Judicial 

Council) prohibits Shalant  ̳from filing any new litigation in propria persona in the 

courts of California without approval of the presiding judge of the court in which 

the action is to be filed.‘ . . . [¶] Shalant filed only one civil action or proceeding 

in this case, namely, his action against Girardi and National Union. He did not file 

it in propria persona but rather filed it through counsel. Nothing in the prefiling 

order prohibits Shalant from continuing to prosecute or maintain an action in 

propria persona as long as he did not file the action in propria persona (and 

nothing in the statutory language would authorize the issuance of a prefiling order 

containing such a prohibition). Shalant therefore did not violate the prefiling 

order, and the trial court erred by granting the motions to dismiss.‖ 

Defendants could have proceeded under section 391.1 for an order 

requiring Shalant to post adequate security before continuing to prosecute his 

action against them, making it subject to dismissal under section 391.4 if he failed 

to do so. On remand, they may still pursue this remedy. They could not, however, 

properly seek dismissal under section 391.7, as it governs only the filing of new 

litigation, and the present action, filed as it was through counsel, did not violate 

the section 391.7 prefiling order against Shalant.

In concluding otherwise, defendants and the trial court relied on Forrest v. 

Department of Corporations (2007) 150 Cal.App.4th 183 (Forrest), which held 

that ―the requirements of a prefiling order, under section 391.7, remain in effect 

throughout the life of a lawsuit and permit dismissal at any point when a vexatious 

litigant proceeds without counsel or without the permission of the presiding 

judge.‖ (Id. at p. 197.)

Despite the breadth of its holding, the Forrest court may have reached the 

right result on the facts before it. Forrest, a vexatious litigant subject to a prefiling 
8

order, was unrepresented by counsel when she filed the action; she later retained 

counsel, who filed and served an amended complaint but withdrew before trial. 

(Forrest, supra, 150 Cal.App.4th at pp. 188-190.) Thus, Forrest violated the 

prefiling order when, acting in propria persona, she ―file[d] . . . new litigation‖ 

without permission of the superior court‘s presiding judge (§ 391.7, subd. (a); see 

Forrest, at p. 188), and her action was arguably subject to dismissal under section 

391.7, subdivision (c) despite counsel‘s later filing of an amended complaint.2 

The Forrest court erred, however, in holding broadly that a prefiling order under 

section 391.7 ―permit[s] dismissal at any point when a vexatious litigant proceeds 

without counsel or without the permission of the presiding judge.‖ (Forrest, at 

p. 197.) By its terms, the statute and orders made pursuant to it apply only to the 

vexatious litigant‘s filing of new litigation.3 

The Forrest court noted that in an order barring a vexatious litigant from 

―filing any new litigation‖ in propria persona (§ 391.7, subd. (a)), ―the word  ̳new‘ 

plainly refers to a civil lawsuit filed after entry of the prefiling order. It does not, 

as Forrest contends, refer to an early procedural stage in the lawsuit.‖ (Forrest, 

supra, 150 Cal.App.4th at p. 196.) This observation was correct: An action that 

was improperly filed in propria persona by a plaintiff subject to a prefiling order 

remains, under section 391.7, subdivision (c), subject to dismissal at any point in 

its pendency, not only at the early stages. At the same time, however, the statutory 

term ―filing‖ plainly refers to filing the lawsuit, not to prosecuting or maintaining 

 

2 We have no occasion here to decide whether, or under what circumstances, 

the filing of an amended complaint constitutes the filing of new litigation within 

the meaning of section 391.7.

3 We therefore disapprove Forrest v. Department of Corporations, supra, 

150 Cal.App.4th 183, to the extent it held section 391.7 applies to acts other than 

the filing of new litigation in propria persona.
9

it. If the plaintiff was represented by counsel when he or she filed the action, 

section 391.7 does not apply at all.

The Forrest court deemed it anomalous for section 391.7‘s application to 

be limited to the filing of a new lawsuit, given that a person can be declared a 

vexatious litigant for having ―prosecuted‖ or ―maintained‖ prior unmeritorious 

litigation in propria persona, or for having filed unmeritorious motions or 

employed frivolous or delaying tactics in the course of prior litigation. (§ 391, 

subd. (b)(1), (3); see Forrest, supra, 150 Cal.App.4th at p. 197.) We detect no 

anomaly. As previously explained, defendants in a pending action brought by a 

vexatious litigant have a remedy under sections 391.1 to 391.6. Section 391.7, 

added in 1990 to supplement those existing statutes, ―operates beyond the pending 

case and affects the litigant‘s future filings.‖ (McColm v. Westwood Park Assn., 

supra, 62 Cal.App.4th at p. 1216.) A potential defendant who, because of a 

prefiling order under section 391.7, is never sued, is thus also relieved of the 

burden of defending against a vexatious litigant‘s unwarranted prosecution of an 

action or use of frivolous or delaying tactics in its prosecution. If, as here, the 

plaintiff is able to file the action through counsel, sections 391.1 to 391.6 continue 

to provide a remedy against the plaintiff‘s unjustifiable behavior in the pending 

case.4

 

4 Nor does our plain language reading of section 391.7 conflict with the 

definition of ―litigation‖ in section 391, subdivision (a), as including an action 

―maintained or pending‖ in a state or federal court. That definition, while 

applicable to section 391.7, does not broaden that statute‘s exclusive authorization 

for an order barring a vexatious litigant from ―filing‖ any new litigation without 

prior permission of the court‘s presiding judge. (§ 391.7, subd. (a).)
10

Defendants observe that ―litigation‖ is defined, for purposes of the 

vexatious litigant statutes, as ―any civil action or proceeding‖ (§ 391, subd. (a), 

italics added) and that the term ―proceeding‖ can, in some contexts, refer ―not only 

to a complete remedy . . . but also to a mere procedural step that is part of a larger 

action or special proceeding.‖ (Rooney v. Vermont Investment Corp. (1973) 10 

Cal.3d 351, 367, fn. omitted.) From this they argue that a vexatious litigant who is 

barred by a prefiling order from ―filing any new litigation‖ in propria persona 

(§ 391.7, subd. (a)), and who becomes self-represented while an action is pending, 

―cannot take any further procedural steps in the action without first obtaining 

permission from the presiding judge . . . .‖ 

Reading the vexatious litigant statutes as a collective whole, defendants‘ 

construction is not a plausible one. If ―litigation‖ as defined in section 391, 

subdivision (a) included every motion or other procedural step taken during an 

action or special proceeding, and that definition were applied throughout the 

vexatious litigant statutes, several provisions would take on absurd, unworkable, 

or clearly unintended meanings. Under section 391, subdivision (b)(1), a person 

could be declared a vexatious litigant for losing five motions—all of which might 

have been filed in the same lawsuit—in a seven-year period. Section 391, 

subdivision (b)(3)‘s reference to ―motions, pleadings, or other papers‖ filed in the 

course of a litigation would make little sense if every motion, pleading, or paper 

filed was itself a new litigation. Under section 391.1, the defendant could move 

for an order requiring the plaintiff to post security each time the plaintiff filed a 

motion or took any other procedural step. The trial court would then have to hold 

a hearing—separate from any hearing on the motion itself—and determine 

whether the plaintiff was reasonably likely to prevail on the motion or other 

procedural step. (§ 391.2.) On a negative finding, the court would then be 
11

required to order the plaintiff to furnish security, presumably cumulative to any 

ordered at earlier stages of the action. (§ 391.3.) If the plaintiff failed to provide 

the security, the action would, according to section 391.4, be ―dismissed,‖ though 

the negative ruling on a motion is ordinarily referred to as a ―denial‖ rather than a 

―dismissal.‖ 

Under section 391.7 itself, defendants‘ construction of ―litigation‖ would 

be unworkable. A vexatious litigant in Shalant‘s position, having filed the action 

through counsel but then having lost representation, would be required to seek 

permission of the presiding judge before filing any motion or other paper. The 

presiding judge of the court would thus be placed in the position of overseeing 

each procedural step of an action pending in another department and deciding in 

each instance whether the particular motion, pleading, or paper had ―merit.‖ 

(§ 391.7, subd. (b).)5 If the clerk inadvertently filed any motion or other paper 

from the plaintiff, a notice from any other party that the plaintiff was subject to a 

prefiling order would automatically stay the ―litigation‖ (§ 391.7, subd. (c))—that 

is, the particular motion filed or other procedural step taken—but the rest of the 

 

5 At oral argument, defense counsel asserted the presiding judge would have 

to grant permission only for the first filing by a newly unrepresented vexatious 

litigant; counsel further argued the presiding judge would determine the merit or 

lack thereof of the entire action, not the particular filing. These assertions, 

however, are contrary to defendants‘ reading of the statutes, under which the 

phrase ―new litigation‖ in section 391.7, subdivision (a) includes each motion or 

other procedural step taken by a vexatious litigant in a pending lawsuit. An order 

under section 391.7, subdivision (a) prohibits the filing of ―any‖ new litigation, 

not merely the first new litigation, and under subdivision (b) of the section the 

presiding judge must determine whether ―that litigation‖ has merit and is being 

filed for purposes other than harassment or delay. The presiding judge, under 

defendants‘ interpretation, would therefore have to assess the merits and purposes 

of each new motion or other filing in an action pending in another department. 
12

action would not necessarily be stayed at the same time. Pretrial and trial 

proceedings would be constantly interrupted for trips to the presiding judge‘s 

department; an orderly and efficient trial would be impossible. Again, the statute 

provides that if permission is not granted, an inadvertently filed litigation is to be 

―dismissed‖ (ibid.), indicating the drafters did not intend each motion, which 

would ordinarily be granted or denied, but not ―dismissed,‖ to be considered a 

separate ―litigation.‖6

Section 391.7, then, is not reasonably susceptible to a reading under which 

a prefiling order would bar the vexatious litigant from filing motions or other 

papers in propria persona even when the action (or special proceeding; see §§ 22, 

23) was itself properly filed through counsel. Any ambiguity on this point, 

moreover, would be dispelled by examination of the legislative history behind 

section 391.7‘s enactment, which shows a clear focus on precluding vexatious 

litigants from filing in propria persona unmeritorious new ―actions‖ or 

―lawsuits.‖7 Nowhere in this history is there any suggestion the new section 

 

6 Subdivision (d) of section 391.7 provides that in a proceeding under the 

Family Code or Probate Code ―  ̳litigation‘ ‖ does include ―any petition, 

application, or motion other than a discovery motion . . . for any order.‖ This 

provision would be unnecessary if, as defendants argue, ―litigation‖ throughout the 

vexatious litigant statutes included every motion or other paper filed by the 

plaintiff.

7 Senate Bill No. 2675 (1989–1990 Reg. Sess.), by which section 391.7 was 

enacted (and the vexatious litigant statutes strengthened in other respects), was 

proposed by the California Attorney General‘s Office, which, in a letter to the 

chairman of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary in preparation for a committee 

hearing, explained that the office ―spends substantial amounts of time defending 

unmeritorious lawsuits brought by vexatious litigants.‖ (Deputy Atty. Gen. 

Jeffrey J. Fuller, letter to Sen. Bill Lockyer re Sen. Bill No. 2675 (1989–1990 Reg. 

Sess.) Apr. 11, 1990, p. 1, italics added.) The proposed law would address this 

problem by, among other measures, ―[p]roviding for judicial review of subsequent 

actions brought by a vexatious litigant prior to filing.‖ (Id. at p. 2, italics added.) 

(footnote continued on next page)
13

would bar vexatious litigants from filing motions or papers in pending litigation. 

The additional remedy provided by section 391.7 was, instead, ―directed at 

precluding the initiation of a meritless lawsuit and the costs associated with 

defending such litigation.‖ (Bravo v. Ismaj, supra, 99 Cal.App.4th at p. 222, 

italics added.)

Defendants argue that interpreting section 391.7 according to its plain 

language would allow a vexatious litigant to ―easily evade the statute simply by 

finding a lawyer who is willing to put his or her name on the complaint and later 

substitute out of the case.‖ However, we cannot assume, contrary to the evident 

premise of section 391.7, that attorneys generally will fail to act as gatekeepers 

against frivolous litigation. ―Attorneys are governed by prescribed rules of ethics 

and professional conduct, and, as officers of the court, are subject to disbarment, 

suspension, and other disciplinary sanctions not applicable to litigants in propria 

 

(footnote continued from previous page)

The committee analysis for the ensuing hearing, in explaining the need for 

legislation, relayed the Attorney General‘s concern with the resources spent 

defending ―unmeritorious lawsuits brought by vexatious litigants‖ and his view 

that the law should be strengthened to ―prevent the waste of public funds required 

for the defense of frivolous suits.‖ (Sen. Com. on Judiciary, Analysis of Sen. Bill 

No. 2675 (1989–1990 Reg. Sess.) Apr. 17, 1990, pp. 2-3, italics added.) A later 

bill summary and a local cost estimate prepared by the Department of Finance 

stated the bill would ―make it more difficult to file frivolous suits and actions‖ by, 

among other things, ―prohibit[ing] court clerks from filing any suit by a vexatious 

litigant unless the presiding judge issues an order permitting such filing.‖ (Dept. 

of Finance, Analysis of Sen. Bill No. 2675 (1989–1990 Reg. Sess.) May 8, 1990, 

p. 1, italics added; Dept. of Finance, Local Cost Estimate for Sen. Bill No. 2675 

(1989–1990 Reg. Sess.) May 8, 1990, p. 1, italics added.) Finally, in urging the 

Governor to sign the legislation, the bill‘s author explained it would ―provide for 

judicial review of subsequent actions filed by persons who have been adjudged 

vexatious litigants.‖ (Sen. Milton Marks, letter to Governor George Deukmejian 

re Sen. Bill No. 2675 (1989–1990 Reg. Sess.) Sept. 11, 1990, ¶ 3, italics added.)
14

persona.‖ (Taliaferro v. Hoogs (1965) 236 Cal.App.2d 521, 527.) ―Since fewer 

sanctions are available against a pro per litigant, the power to declare him 

vexatious becomes an important tool for the courts to manage their dockets and 

prevent frivolous claims. Attorneys, on the other hand, are bound by rules of 

ethics and—perhaps just as importantly—rely on their reputation in the 

community to sustain their careers. Attorneys therefore are much less likely to file 

frivolous claims, event [sic: even] absent the threat of their clients being declared 

vexatious litigants.‖ (Doran v. Vicorp Restaurants, Inc. (C.D.Cal. 2005) 407 

F.Supp.2d 1115, 1118, fn. omitted.) One might add that the threat of malicious 

prosecution liability for bringing an unmeritorious action or special proceeding 

without probable cause, while it may do little to deter a vexatious litigant, is likely 

to have more significance for the vexatious litigant‘s attorney.8 

The Legislature‘s express distinction between litigation filed in propria 

persona and that filed through an attorney, therefore, is not an absurd one that 

could not have been intended. Even if a broader rule, barring vexatious litigants 

from filing or maintaining new litigation in propria persona, would serve the 

statute‘s purposes better by ending more frivolous litigation more quickly, we 

have no warrant to ignore section 391.7‘s unambiguous language in favor of such 

a rule. As the appellate court below remarked: ―We sympathize with the plight of 

already overburdened trial courts that are forced to contend with the abusive 

 

8 We express no opinion as to whether section 391.7 may be applied when 

the record shows the vexatious litigant‘s attorney has, in filing the action, acted as 

a ―mere puppet[]‖ of the litigant. (In re Shieh (1993) 17 Cal.App.4th 1154, 1167.) 

The trial court made no such finding in dismissing Shalant‘s action, and 

defendants, though they cite Shieh as supporting a broad interpretation of section 

391.7, do not argue the dismissal should be affirmed on grounds the attorney who 

filed this action was merely a puppet for Shalant.
15

conduct of vexatious litigants. But in their efforts to deal with the problem of 

vexatious litigants, courts must observe the limits set by the applicable statutory 

scheme. If those limits are too confining, then it is the function of the Legislature, 

not the courts, to expand them.‖ As already noted, defendants here may avail 

themselves of the remedy under sections 391.1 to 391.6, applicable to pending 

actions, by seeking an order that Shalant post security to continue his prosecution 

of this action.

DISPOSITION

The judgment of the Court of Appeal is affirmed.

WERDEGAR, J.

WE CONCUR:

CANTIL-SAKAUYE, C. J.

KENNARD, J.

BAXTER, J.

CHIN, J.

CORRIGAN, J.

HILL, J.*

 

* Presiding Justice of the Court of Appeal, Fifth Appellate District, assigned 

by the Chief Justice pursuant to article VI, section 6 of the California Constitution.
See next page for addresses and telephone numbers for counsel who argued in Supreme Court.

Name of Opinion Shalant v. Girardi

__________________________________________________________________________________

Unpublished Opinion

Original Appeal

Original Proceeding

Review Granted XXX 183 Cal.App.4th 545

Rehearing Granted

__________________________________________________________________________________

Opinion No. S182629

Date Filed: June 23, 2011

__________________________________________________________________________________

Court: Superior

County: Los Angeles

Judge: Teresa Sanchez-Gordon

__________________________________________________________________________________

Counsel:

Joseph L. Shalant, in pro. per.; Law Offices of Brian A. Yapko and Brian A. Yapko for Plaintiff and 

Appellant and for Defendant and Appellant.

Girardi Keese, Shawn J. McCann; Niddrie, Fish & Buchanan, Law Offices of Martin N. Buchanan and 

Martin N. Buchanan for Defendant and Respondent Thomas v. Girardi and for Plaintiff and Respondent.

Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith and Rebecca R. Weinreich for Defendant and Respondent National 

Union Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburgh, PA.

Garrett & Tully, Ryan C. Squire and Jennifer R. Slater for Los Angeles Society for the Prevention of 

Cruelty to Animals as Amicus Curiae on behalf of Defendants and Respondents.
Counsel who argued in Supreme Court (not intended for publication with opinion):

Joseph L. Shalant

14924 Camarosa Dr.

Pacific Palisades, CA 90272

(213) 380-2020

Martin N. Buchanan

Law Offices of Martin N. Buchanan

600 B Street, Suite 1900

San Diego, CA 92101

(619) 238-2426