In the Court of Appeal of the State of California, Third Appellate District, Neptune Management Corp. has filed an appeal against Cemetery and Funeral Bureau. The case ID is C098037 and it was filed on March 21, 2024. The lawsuit revolves around a citation issued by the Bureau to Neptune for not holding in trust money received for cremation merchandise, which Neptune argues is in violation of Business and Professions Code section 7735.
Neptune, represented by attorneys from Gurnee, Mason, Rushford, Bonotto & Forestiere and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, claims that it delivered the merchandise at the time of sale and thus satisfied an exception to the trusting requirement. The Bureau's lawyers from Attorney General Rob Bonta's office counter this claim stating that Neptune did not deliver as required by the exception. The dispute arose from a preneed agreement signed with a client identified as T.R., who purchased both merchandise and services amounting to $991.85.
The plaintiff seeks judgment on two main points: that they satisfied an exception to the trusting requirement due to immediate delivery of merchandise upon sale; and that the Bureau should be equitably estopped from challenging its practices based on a prior settlement agreement. However, the court affirmed its initial decision denying Neptune's petition.