The Pointe Malibu Recovery Center Seeks Private Arbitration in Mold Exposure Lawsuit After Court Denies Motion to Seal

Luxury $100,000 a month treatment facility seeks to move mold exposure and medical neglect lawsuit behind closed doors.

LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESS Newswire / April 9, 2026 / On April 7, 2026, The Pointe Malibu Recovery Center and its Executive Director, Jennell Maze, LCSW, filed a Motion to Compel Arbitration and Stay Proceedings in Hickman v. James & Bentz, Inc., et al., Case No. 25SMCV04669, before the Honorable Mark H. Epstein in Department I of the Los Angeles Superior Court, Santa Monica Courthouse. The hearing is set for May 28, 2026 at 9:00 a.m.

The motion follows the Court’s denial of Defendants’ earlier motion to seal records in the case. Having failed to keep the case file from public view, The Pointe Malibu Recovery Center now seeks to compel the entire dispute into private arbitration.

Plaintiff Robert Alexander Hickman’s First Amended Complaint, filed March 10, 2026, asserts 13 causes of action arising from his July 2025 stay at the facility, located at 31450 Broad Beach Road, Malibu, California, for which he paid $50,000 for a 16-day stay: General Negligence (Premises Liability), Negligence, Negligence Per Se, Fraud (Concealment), Negligent Misrepresentation, Medical Malpractice, Professional Negligence (Licensed Clinical Social Worker), Unfair Business Practices (Business and Professions Code section 17200), Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress, Negligent Infliction of Emotional Distress, Breach of Contract, Breach of the Implied Covenant of Good Faith and Fair Dealing, and Rescission and Restitution.

Named defendants include James & Bentz, Inc. dba The Pointe Malibu Recovery Center, Jennell Maze, LCSW, Martha E. Vincent (Trustee of the WWV Living Trust), and Stacy Cohen, MD.

Court Case Link: Los Angeles Superior Court Civil Case Access: https://www.lacourt.ca.gov/pages/lp/access-a-case/tp/find-case-information/cp/os-civil-case-access

MEDIA CONTACT: Logan Anthony, Verdict Public Relations, LLC., pr@verdictpublicrelations.com, (310)765-7445

SOURCE: Verdict PR

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