GEICO County Mutual Insurance Company v. Anderson et al, No. 2:2023cv00985 - Document 12 (D. Nev. 2023)

Court Description: ORDER granting ECF No. 11 Motion to Extend Time. Plaintiff shall have until November 29, 2023 within which to serve Defendants. Signed by Magistrate Judge Daniel J. Albregts on 9/5/2023. (Copies have been distributed pursuant to the NEF - DLS)

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GEICO County Mutual Insurance Company v. Anderson et al Doc. 12 Case 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA Document 12 Filed 09/05/23 Page 1 of 16 1 McCormick, Barstow, Sheppard, Wayte & Carruth LLP 2 James P. Wagoner California Bar No. 58553 3 (admitted pro hac vice) Jim.wagoner@mccormickbarstow.com 4 Jonathan W. Carlson Nevada Bar No. 10536 5 jonathan.carlson@mccormickbarstow.com Mandy Vogel 6 Nevada Bar No. 16150 mandy.vogel@mccormickbarstow.com 7 8337 West Sunset Road, Suite 350 Las Vegas, Nevada 89113 8 Telephone: (702) 949-1100 Facsimile: (702) 949-1101 9 Attorneys for Plaintiff 10 GEICO County Mutual Insurance Company 11 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 12 DISTRICT OF NEVADA, SOUTHERN DIVISION 13 14 GEICO COUNTY MUTUAL INSURANCE 15 COMPANY, a Corporation, 16 17 Plaintiff, Case No. 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA ORDER RE: MOTION TO ENLARGE TIME TO SERVE DEFENDANTS v. 18 RYAN A. ANDERSON, an Individual; JONATHAN R. ANDERSON, an Individual; 19 Alixandria Burton as Special Administrator of the ESTATE OF WALTER R. ANDERSON; 20 ANDREW JAMES RODRIGUEZ, an Individual, 21 Defendants. 22 23 Plaintiff GEICO County Mutual Insurance Company (“GEICO”), by and through its 24 attorneys of record, the law firm McCormick, Barstow, Sheppard, Wayte & Carruth LLP, hereby 25 moves this Honorable Court pursuant to FRCP 4(e) and NRCP 4(e)(1) for Order enlarging the time 26 allowed to serve the Summons and Complaint on Defendants Ryan A. Anderson, Jonathan R. 27 Anderson, Alixandria Burton as Special Administrator of the Estate of Walter R. Anderson and 28 Andrew James Rodriguez. MCCORMICK, BARSTOW, SHEPPARD, W AYTE & CARRUTH LLP 8337 WEST SUNSET ROAD, SUITE 350 LAS VEGAS, NV 89113 Case No. 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA MOTION TO ENLARGE TIME TO SERVE DEFENDANTS Dockets.Justia.com Case 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA Document 12 Filed 09/05/23 Page 2 of 16 1 I. INTRODUCTION AND FACTUAL BACKGROUND 2 GEICO instituted this declaratory relief action on June 27, 2023 seeking to have this Court 3 declare that the claims of Ryan Anderson, Jonathan Anderson and Alixandria Burton as Special 4 Administrator of the Estate of Walter R. Anderson, are all derivative in nature arising from the death 5 of Decedent Walter R. Anderson, and that under the terms and conditions of GEICO policy no. 6 4335-88-94-83, they are not entitled to recover from GEICO on any judgment in the Underlying 7 Action entitled Anderson v. Rodriguez, Clark County District Court, Nevada case no. A-21-8383448 C (the “Underlying Action”) against any covered person for an amount in excess of the policy’s 9 $100,001 “Each Person” limit. See ECF No. 1. The summonses as to all Defendants were issued 10 on June 29, 2023. See ECF Nos. 6, 6-1, 6-2, and 6-3. GEICO filed its Amended Complaint for 11 Declaratory Relief on July 13, 2023 to correct the inadvertent inclusion of its Named Insureds, David 12 Lara and Sylvia Rodriguez, as named defendants to the declaratory relief action. See ECF No. 10. 13 On July 31, 2023, in an attempt to formally serve the Summons and First Amended 14 Complaint, counsel for GEICO prepared correspondence to counsel representing Defendants Ryan 15 Anderson, Jonathan Anderson and Alixandria Burton as Special Administrator of the Estate of 16 Walter R. Anderson (the “Anderson Defendants”) in the Underlying Action enclosing a copy of the 17 Amended Complaint for Declaratory Judgment filed on July 13, 2023, the accompanying court 18 documents, and a Notice and Acknowledgment of Receipt of Summons and Complaint requesting 19 they accept service on behalf of the Anderson Defendants. See July 31, 2023 Correspondence to 20 Peter S. Christiansen, Esq., attached hereto as Exhibit 1. An identical letter was addressed and sent 21 that same date by counsel for GEICO to counsel for Defendant Andrew Rodriguez in the Underlying 22 Action. See July 31, 2023 Correspondence to Craig S. Newman, Esq., attached hereto as Exhibit 2. 23 Shortly thereafter, the parties to the Underlying Action reached a settlement. See Notice of 24 Settlement filed August 9, 2023 in Clark County District Court, Nevada case no. A-21-838344-C, 25 attached hereto as Exhibit 3. A status check in the Underlying Action regarding the settlement has 26 been scheduled for September 12, 2023 at 9:15 a.m. before the Hon. Jasmin Lilly-Spells in 27 Department 23. See Notice of Hearing filed August 28, 2023, attached hereto as Exhibit 4. 28 MCCORMICK, BARSTOW, SHEPPARD, W AYTE & CARRUTH LLP 8337 WEST SUNSET ROAD, SUITE 350 LAS VEGAS, NV 89113 The current deadline for GEICO to serve all Defendants in this declaratory relief action is Case No. 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA 2 MOTION TO ENLARGE TIME TO SERVE DEFENDANTS Case 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA Document 12 Filed 09/05/23 Page 3 of 16 1 September 25, 2023. FRCP 4(m). If the settlement in the Underlying Action becomes 2 finalized pursuant to the filing of dismissal with prejudice, the instant declaratory relief action will 3 become moot. However, if for any reason the settlement in the Underlying Action should not be 4 finalized or otherwise fall through, GEICO will likely need to proceed with the instant action. 5 Based on the foregoing, GEICO respectfully requests an extension of ninety (90) days within 6 which to serve all Defendants in this declaratory relief action. If the Underlying Action should 7 resolve as anticipated, service will not need to be effectuated and the instant action may be 8 dismissed. However, if the Underlying Action should not resolve, the instant action may need to 9 proceed. 10 An enlargement of time to serve Defendants does not prejudice any party because this action 11 will either be dismissed or the parties will be formally served personally. Further, an enlargement 12 of time is in the interest of judicial economy, preserving the instant action should it need to move 13 forward rather than being dismissed on grounds of lack of timely service and requiring GEICO to 14 refile its Complaint at a later date. 15 II. LAW AND ARGUMENT 16 A. 17 Local Rule of Practice LR IC 3-1(d), states in relevant part: “In the absence of a court order, Motion to Enlarge Time to Serve All Defendants. 18 the applicable Federal Rules, statutes, or local rules govern computing and extending time for 19 serving and filing of all documents notwithstanding any contrary deadline in a Notice of Electronic 20 Filing.” 21 22 23 FRCP 6(b) provides: (b) Extending Time. 24 In General. When an act may or must be done within a specified time, the court may, for good cause, extend the time: 25 (A) 26 27 (1) with or without motion or notice if the court acts, or if a request is made, before the original time or its extension expires …. Here, good cause exists for an Order enlarging the time to serve the Summons and Complaint 28 on all Defendants. After filing its Amended Complaint for Declaratory Relief, GEICO attempted MCCORMICK, BARSTOW, SHEPPARD, W AYTE & CARRUTH LLP 8337 WEST SUNSET ROAD, SUITE 350 LAS VEGAS, NV 89113 Case No. 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA 3 MOTION TO ENLARGE TIME TO SERVE DEFENDANTS Case 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA Document 12 Filed 09/05/23 Page 4 of 16 1 to have the defendants served via Notices of Acknowledgment and Receipt. Shortly 2 thereafter, however, the parties in the Underlying Action reached a tentative settlement, which, 3 if finalized, will render the instant declaratory relief action moot. GEICO therefore seeks this 4 extension of time to allow the settlement of the Underlying Action to become finalized without 5 foregoing its right to pursue the declaratory relief action should the Underlying Action 6 settlement not be finalized for some unknown, unanticipated reason. Should the latter happen, 7 GEICO will immediately re-enlist efforts to personally serve the parties. 8 As demonstrated above, good cause exists for an Order enlarging the time by ninety (90) 9 days to serve the Summons and Amended Complaint for Declaratory Relief on all Defendants. 10 III. CONCLUSION 11 Based on the foregoing, Plaintiff GEICO County Mutual Insurance Company respectfully 12 requests an Order enlarging the time to serve all Defendants to a date of ninety (90) days after the 13 date of the Court’s order granting this Motion. 14 Dated: August 31, 2023 McCORMICK, BARSTOW, SHEPPARD, WAYTE & CARRUTH LLP 15 16 By: 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 /s/ Jonathan W. Carlson James P. Wagoner Nevada Bar No. Jonathan W. Carlson Nevada Bar No. 10536 Mandy Vogel Nevada Bar No. 16150 Attorneys for Plaintiff GEICO County Mutual Insurance Company 9324837.1 IT IS SO ORDERED. Plaintiff shall have until November 29, 2023 within which to serve Defendants. DATED this 5th day of September, 2023. 25 26 27 __________________________________ DANIEL J. ALBREGTS UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE 28 MCCORMICK, BARSTOW, SHEPPARD, W AYTE & CARRUTH LLP 8337 WEST SUNSET ROAD, SUITE 350 LAS VEGAS, NV 89113 Case No. 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA 4 MOTION TO ENLARGE TIME TO SERVE DEFENDANTS Case 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA Document 12 Filed 09/05/23 Page 5 of 16 1 2 CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I hereby certify that on this 31st day of August, 2023, a true and correct copy of MOTION 3 TO ENLARGE TIME TO SERVE DEFENDANTS was served via the United States District 4 Court CM/ECF system on all parties or persons requiring notice. 5 6 7 8 By /s/ Susan Kingsbury an Employee of McCORMICK, BARSTOW, SHEPPARD, WAYTE & CARRUTH LLP 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 MCCORMICK, BARSTOW, SHEPPARD, W AYTE & CARRUTH LLP 8337 WEST SUNSET ROAD, SUITE 350 LAS VEGAS, NV 89113 Case No. 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA 5 MOTION TO ENLARGE TIME TO SERVE DEFENDANTS Case 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA Document 12 Filed 09/05/23 Page 6 of 16 EXHIBIT 1 Case 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA Document 12 Filed 09/05/23 Page 7 of 16 July 31, 2023 Via Email: Pete@christiansenlaw.com James P. Wagoner jim.wagoner@mccormickbarstow.com *Certified Appellate Law Specialist certified by the Board of Legal Specialization of the California State Bar. FRESNO, CA OFFICE 7647 North Fresno Street Fresno, California 93720 P.O. Box 28912 Fresno, CA 93729-8912 Telephone (559) 433-1300 Fax (559) 433-2300 Peter S. Christiansen, Esq. Christiansen Trial Lawyers 710 S. 7th Street, Suite B Las Vegas, Nevada 89101 Re: Ryan Anderson v. Andrew James Rodriguez, District Court, Clark County Nevada, Case No. A-21-838344-C GEICO County Mutual Insurance Company v. Ryan Anderson, et al. District Case No. 2-23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA Dear Mr. Christiansen: Other offices of McCORMICK, BARSTOW, SHEPPARD, WAYTE & CARRUTH LLP www.mccormickbarstow.com BAKERSFIELD, CA OFFICE 5060 California Ave., Suite 1090 Bakersfield, California 93309 Telephone (661) 616-1594 Fax (661) 616-1595 CINCINNATI, OH OFFICE Scripps Center, Suite 1050 312 Walnut Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Telephone (513) 762-7520 Fax (513) 762-7521 LAS VEGAS, NV OFFICE 8337 West Sunset Road, Suite 350 Las Vegas, Nevada 89113 Telephone (702) 949-1100 Fax (702) 949-1101 MODESTO, CA OFFICE 1125 I Street, Suite 1 Modesto, California 95354 Telephone (209) 524-1100 Fax (209) 524-1188 RENO, NV OFFICE 241 Ridge Street, Suite 300 Reno, Nevada 89501 Telephone (775) 333-0400 Fax (775) 333-0412 SAN LUIS OBISPO, CA OFFICE 1041 Mill Street, Suite 105 San Luis Obispo, California 93401 Telephone (805) 541-2800 Fax (805) 541-2802 This Firm and the undersigned are counsel of record for GEICO County Mutual Insurance Company (“GEICO”) in the above-referenced declaratory relief action. Enclosed herewith is a copy of the Amended Complaint for Declaratory Relief filed on July 13, 2023, the accompanying court documents, and a Notices and Acknowledgments of Receipt of Summons and Complaint. We ask that you accept service for Defendants Ryan A. Anderson, Jonathan R. Anderson, and Alexandria Burton as the Special Administrator for the Estate of Walter R. Anderson by way of the enclosed Notices and Acknowledgments of Receipt and return a signed copy of the Acknowledgments to our office. Otherwise, we will have no choice but to attempt to have the documents formally served. Please contact our office if you have any questions. Thank you for your assistance. Very truly yours, James P. Wagoner McCormick Barstow LLP Enclosures 9207264.1 Case 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA Document 12 Filed 09/05/23 Page 8 of 16 EXHIBIT 2 Case 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA Document 12 Filed 09/05/23 Page 9 of 16 July 31, 2023 Via Email: cnewman@sklar-law.com James P. Wagoner jim.wagoner@mccormickbarstow.com *Certified Appellate Law Specialist certified by the Board of Legal Specialization of the California State Bar. FRESNO, CA OFFICE 7647 North Fresno Street Fresno, California 93720 P.O. Box 28912 Fresno, CA 93729-8912 Telephone (559) 433-1300 Fax (559) 433-2300 Craig S. Newman, Esq. Sklar Williams PLLC 410 South Rampart Blvd., Ste. 350 Las Vegas, Nevada 89145 Re: Ryan Anderson v. Andrew James Rodriguez, District Court, Clark County Nevada, Case No. A-21-838344-C GEICO County Mutual Insurance Company v. Ryan Anderson, et al. District Case No. 2-23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA Dear Mr. Newman: Other offices of McCORMICK, BARSTOW, SHEPPARD, WAYTE & CARRUTH LLP www.mccormickbarstow.com BAKERSFIELD, CA OFFICE 5060 California Ave., Suite 1090 Bakersfield, California 93309 Telephone (661) 616-1594 Fax (661) 616-1595 CINCINNATI, OH OFFICE Scripps Center, Suite 1050 312 Walnut Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Telephone (513) 762-7520 Fax (513) 762-7521 LAS VEGAS, NV OFFICE 8337 West Sunset Road, Suite 350 Las Vegas, Nevada 89113 Telephone (702) 949-1100 Fax (702) 949-1101 MODESTO, CA OFFICE 1125 I Street, Suite 1 Modesto, California 95354 Telephone (209) 524-1100 Fax (209) 524-1188 RENO, NV OFFICE 241 Ridge Street, Suite 300 Reno, Nevada 89501 Telephone (775) 333-0400 Fax (775) 333-0412 SAN LUIS OBISPO, CA OFFICE 1041 Mill Street, Suite 105 San Luis Obispo, California 93401 Telephone (805) 541-2800 Fax (805) 541-2802 This Firm and the undersigned are counsel of record for GEICO County Mutual Insurance Company (“GEICO”) in the above-referenced declaratory relief action. Enclosed herewith is a copy of the Amended Complaint for Declaratory Relief filed on July 13, 2023, the accompanying court documents, and a Notice and Acknowledgment of Receipt of Summons and Complaint. We ask that you accept service for Defendant Andrew James Rodriguez by way of the enclosed Notice and Acknowledgment of Receipt and return a signed copy of the Acknowledgment to our office. Otherwise, we will have no choice but to attempt to have the documents formally served. Please contact our office if you have any questions. Thank you for your assistance. Very truly yours, James P. Wagoner McCormick Barstow LLP Enclosures 9208736.1 Case 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA Document 12 Filed 09/05/23 Page 10 of 16 EXHIBIT 3 Case 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA Document 12 Filed 09/05/23 Page 11 of 16 Electronically Filed 8/9/202311:42 AM Steven D.Grierson CLERK OF THE COURT 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 NOTC THOMAS E. WINNER Nevada Bar No. 5168 ZACHARY W. LIVINGSTON Nevada Bar No. 15954 Winner & Booze 1117 S. Rancho Drive Las Vegas, NV 89102 Phone (702) 243-7000 Facsimile (702) 243-7059 twinner@winnerfirm.com zlivingston@winnerfirm.com Attorney for Defendant 8 EIGHTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT 9 CLARK COUNTY, NEVADA 10 11 12 RYAN A. ANDERSON, JONATHAN R. ANDERSON, ALIXANDRIA BURTON, as Special Administrator of the ESTATE OF WALTER R. ANDERSON, Deceased, NOTICE OF SETTLEMENT 13 Plaintiffs, 14 15 vs. 16 ANDREW JAMES RODRIGUEZ, an individual; SABRINA WENGER, an individual; KEATON SCOTT LUTHER, an individual; , LUTHER CAPITAL, LLC, a Domestic LimitedLiability Company; SCOTT L. HUSS, LLC, an individual; ALL STAR CARS, LLC., a Domestic Limited Liability Company; CORY MCCORMACK, an individual; DOES I through X, inclusive; and ROE BUSINESS ENTITIES I through X, inclusive, 17 18 19 20 21 CASE NO.: A-21-838344-C DEPT. NO.: XXIII Defendants. 22 23 TO THE COURT, ALL PARTIES AND THEIR ATTORNEYS OF RECORD HEREIN: 24 25 26 PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that the parties to the above-entitled action have now fully settled their claims in this case, with an agreement that each side will bear their own fees and costs. 27 28 Page 1 of 3 Case Number: A-21-838344-C Case 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA Document 12 Filed 09/05/23 Page 12 of 16 1 2 3 It is expected that the settlement documents can be exchanged, and this matter will be fully resolved, with a Stipulation and Order for Dismissal with Prejudice filed with the Court within the next 30 days. 4 5 6 DATED this 9th day of August, 2023. WINNER & BOOZE 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 /s/ Zach Livingston THOMAS E. WINNER Nevada Bar No. 5168 ZACHARY W. LIVINGSTON Nevada Bar No. 15954 1117 S. Rancho Drive Las Vegas, NV 89102 Phone (702) 243-7000 Facsimile (702) 243-7059 twinner@winnerfirm.com Attorney for Defendant Andrew Rodriguez 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 Page 2 of 3 Case 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA Document 12 Filed 09/05/23 Page 13 of 16 CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE 1 2 I certify that on this 9th day of August, 2023, the foregoing NOTICE OF SETTLEMENT 3 was served on the following by [ ] Electronic Service pursuant to NEFR 9 [X] Electronic Filing 4 and Service pursuant to NEFR 9 [ ] hand delivery [ ] overnight delivery [ ] fax [ ] fax and mail [ 5 ] mailing by depositing with the U.S. mail in Las Vegas, Nevada, enclosed in a sealed envelope 6 with first class postage prepaid, addressed as follows: 7 8 9 10 R. Todd Terry Kendelee L. Works Christiansen Trial Lawyers 710 South 7th Street, Suite B Las Vegas, Nevada 89101 Attorneys for Plaintiffs 11 12 13 /s/ Sherri Leyva An employee of WINNER & BOOZE 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 Page 3 of 3 Case 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA Document 12 Filed 09/05/23 Page 14 of 16 EXHIBIT 4 Case 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA Document 12 Filed 09/05/23 Page 15 of 16 Electronically Filed 8/28/2023 9:10AM Steven D.Grierson CLERK OF THE COURT 1 DISTRICT COURT 2 CLARK COUNTY, NEVADA **** 3 4 5 6 RYAN ANDERSON, PLAINTIFF(S) VS. ANDREW RODRIGUEZ, DEFENDANT(S) CASE NO.: A-21-838344-C DEPARTMENT 23 7 NOTICE OF HEARING 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 TO: Peter S Christiansen R. Todd Terry Kendelee Leascher Works Whitney Barrett Craig S. Newman Johnathon Fayeghi Steven C. Devney John Holiday Michael L. Shirts Philip Goodhart Patrick J. Sheehan Michael C. Van Garrett R. Chase 17 18 Please be advised that the above-entitled matter has been scheduled for Status 19 Check: Settlement Documents, to be heard by the Honorable JASMIN LILLY-SPELLS, at 20 21 22 23 24 the Regional Justice Center, 200 Lewis Ave, Las Vegas, Nevada 89155, on the 12th day of September, 2023, at the hour of 9:15 AM, in RJC Courtroom 12D, Department 23. YOUR PRESENCE IS NECESSARY HONORABLE JASMIN LILLY-SPELLS /s/ Deborah Boyer 25 26 By: Deborah Boyer Judicial Executive Assistant 27 28 JASMIN LILLY-SPELLS DISTRICT JUDGE DEPARTMENT 23 LAS VEGAS, NV 89101 Case Number: A-21-838344-C Case 2:23-cv-00985-JCM-DJA Document 12 Filed 09/05/23 Page 16 of 16 1 CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE 2 I hereby certify that on or about the date e-filed, I served a copy of the foregoing document. 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 JASMIN LILLY-SPELLS DISTRICT JUDGE DEPARTMENT 23 LAS VEGAS, NV 89101 John Holiday SHUMWAY VAN Attn: John R. Holiday, Esq. 8985 South Eastern Avenue Las Vegas, NV 89101 Kendelee Leascher Works Christiansen Trial Lawyers Attn: Kendelee Works, Esq 710 S. 7th Street Las Vegas, NV 89101 Patrick J. Sheehan Fennemore Craig, P.C Attn: Patrick J. Sheehan, Esq 9275 W. Russell Rd. Suite 240 Las Vegas, NV 89148 Steven C. Devney Winner & Booze Attn: Steven C. Devney, Esq 1117 South Rancho Drive Las Vegas, NV 89102 /s/ Deborah Boyer Deborah Boyer Judicial Executive Assistant Department 23

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