Does a plaintiff have to prove that he or she failed to receive the effective assistance of counsel?

The answer is no. A defendant asserting he or she failed to receive the effective assistance of counsel bears the burden of showing by a preponderance of the evidence that (1) counsel's performance was deficient because it fell below an objective standard of reasonableness under prevailing professional norms, and (2) counsel's deficiencies resulted in prejudice. (People v. Centeno (2014) 60 Cal.4th 659, 674, 180 Cal.Rptr.3d 649, 338 P.3d 938.) But since [t]he object of an ineffectiveness claim is not to grade counsel's performance (In re Cox (2003) 30 Cal.4th 974, 1019, 135 Cal.Rptr.2d 315, 70 P.3d 313 ), where it is easier to dispose of an ineffectiveness claim on the ground of lack of sufficient prejudice, ... that

[236 Cal.App.4th 613]