Under CCP 425.13, a plaintiff may not bring a claim for punitive damages in a medical malpractice case without first moving for and obtaining a court order allowing her to amend to allege that claim. The statute also provides that the motion to amend must be brought before the earlier of 2 years from filing of the action or 9 months before the first scheduled trial date. Here, plaintiff filed the motion less than 9 months before the trial date, so the trial court was required to deny the motion even though there was evidence to support a claim for punitive damages. Section 425.13 applied to the plaintiff’s claims because they arose from professional services provided by persons licensed as doctors or similar professionals. Battery and misrepresentation claims didn’t bring the case outside section 425.13’s scope. Nor did defendants waive the noncompliance with section 425.13 by not objecting to the original complaint which alleged malice, oppression or fraud. But since the complaint did not contain a claim for punitive damages, there was nothing objectionable in its allegations.