Ramos v. Baja Cali Inc.
- Joseph Spero
- 3:25-cv-05896
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 3
In Ramos v. Baja Cali, Judge Spero granted publication service after failed personal and mail attempts, allowing service on two defendants through a newspaper.
Oscar Ramos and the Georgopoulos defendants, Gerasimos Georgopoulos and Gerasimoula Georgopoulos; the order authorizes service of the summons on the two defendants by publication.
What happened
Oscar Ramos asked in Ramos v. Baja Cali Inc. to serve Gerasimos Georgopoulos and Gerasimoula Georgopoulos by publishing the summons. Several attempts to serve them personally at their Yuba City residence failed, and a package sent by registered mail was returned unclaimed.
The court found that reasonable efforts had not located another way to serve the two defendants. It also found that a legal claim existed because Ramos alleged they owned the real property where a business allegedly violated the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Judge Joseph C. Spero granted Ramos’s application. Ramos’s counsel must publish the summons in the print and electronic editions of the Appeal Democrat once a week for four consecutive weeks and then file proof of service.
The detailed version
- Ramos v. Baja Cali Inc. · No. 3:25-cv-05896
- Joseph Spero
- Dec. 15, 2025
Background
Oscar Ramos renewed his request to serve the summons and complaint by publication on Gerasimos Georgopoulos and Gerasimoula Georgopoulos. The opinion refers to them as the Georgopoulos defendants.
According to declarations submitted by Ramos’s counsel and a process server, multiple attempts were made to personally serve the Georgopoulos defendants at their residence at the Yuba City address. The property was gated, preventing the process server from gaining access. Ramos’s counsel also sent the summons and complaint by registered mail to that address, but the package was returned as unclaimed.
After the court denied Ramos’s initial request, the process server conducted additional searches for alternative addresses. Ramos’s counsel also identified the Appeal Democrat as the publication most likely to provide actual notice because it is published in Yuba City, where the defendants’ residence is located.
Legal standard
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4 allows service under the law of the state where the federal court is located or where service is made. Under California Code of Civil Procedure § 415.50, a summons may be served by publication if the court is satisfied that the person cannot, with reasonable diligence, be served in another authorized manner and that a cause of action exists against that person.
Ruling
The court found, based on the declarations, that the Georgopoulos defendants could not with reasonable diligence be served in another manner. The court also concluded that a cause of action existed for purposes of publication because Ramos alleged that the Georgopoulos defendants were the real property owners of the business alleged to violate the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The court GRANTS Ramos’s application to serve the Georgopoulos defendants by publication. Ramos’s counsel must arrange for publication of the summons in the print and electronic editions of the Appeal Democrat once a week for four consecutive weeks. After service is completed, Ramos must file an affidavit establishing that the defendants were served in accordance with the order.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.