Hoffman et al v. Transworld Systems Incorporated et al, No. 2:2018cv01132 - Document 295 (W.D. Wash. 2022)
Court Description: ORDER granting Parties' 293 Stipulated Motion to Continue Deadlines. The current deadlines for the parties to file dispositive motions for summary judgment and motions related to expert witnesses are hereby stayed until further order of the Court. Within five (5) days of the Court's decision on Plaintiffs' motions seeking discovery from TSI that are pending before the Court (Dkt. 271 , 276 ), the parties shall meet and confer and attempt to agree on new filing and noting deadlines for dispositive motions for summary judgment and motions related to expert witnesses. Signed by Judge Thomas S. Zilly.(MW)
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Hoffman et al v. Transworld Systems Incorporated et al Doc. 295 Case 2:18-cv-01132-TSZ Document 295 Filed 05/03/22 Page 1 of 8 Hon. Thomas S. Zilly 1 2 3 4 5 6 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON AT SEATTLE 7 8 9 10 ESTHER HOFFMAN; et al., 11 12 Case No.: 18-cv-1132-TSZ PLAINTIFFS, STIPULATED MOTION AND ORDER CONTINUING DEADLINES FOR THE PARTIES TO FILE DISPOSITIVE MOTIONS AND EXPERT WITNESS MOTIONS v. 13 14 TRANSWORLD SYSTEMS INCORPORATION; et. al., 15 DEFENDANTS. 16 17 18 I. 19 20 21 22 1. STIPULATED MOTION Pursuant to LCR 7(d)(1) and LCR 10(g), Plaintiffs and Defendants hereby respectfully submit this stipulated motion for entry of an order (a) continuing the deadlines for the parties to file and brief dispositive motions for summary judgment and motions related to expert 23 24 25 26 witnesses, and (b) allowing the parties to conduct certain depositions after the close of discovery as described below. 2. Plaintiffs have two pending motions seeking discovery from TSI. One was noted 27 28 STIPULATED MOTION AND ORDER CONTINUING DEADLINES LOCKE LORD LLP 200 VESEY STREET, 20TH FLOOR NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10281 (212) 415-8600 18-CV-1132-TSZ 126350759V.1 - 1- Dockets.Justia.com Case 2:18-cv-01132-TSZ Document 295 Filed 05/03/22 Page 2 of 8 1 for April 4, 2022. (Dkt. 271) and the other for April 22, 2022 (Dkt. 276) (together, the “Discovery 2 Motions”). Once the Court decides the pending Discovery Motions, and if either of the Motions 3 are granted and additional discovery is ordered, additional time may be needed thereafter to 4 5 6 complete this discovery. 3. On March 13, 2022, the parties stipulated, and on March 14, 2022, the Court 7 ordered, that in light of the Discovery Motions, “[w]ithin five (5) days of the Court’s decision on 8 any motion concerning the scope of [TSI’s] Designated Representative’s required testimony, the 9 parties shall meet and confer and attempt to agree on new filing deadline and noting dates for TSI’s 10 11 Motion for Summary Judgment (Dkt. 161) and responses thereto on a schedule similar to the 12 current briefing schedule and Plaintiffs’ Motion for Class Certification (Dkt. 232) and responses 13 thereto on a schedule similar to the current briefing schedule ….” Dkt. 268, ¶ 9. 14 4. The operative Order Setting Trial and Related Dates (Dkt. 146) set a May 5, 2022 15 deadline for dispositive motions to be filed and May 12, 2022 deadline for all motions related to 16 17 18 19 20 expert witnesses to be filed. 5. Because additional motions for summary judgment and motions related to expert witnesses cannot be briefed and noted by most parties until after depositions of expert witnesses are completed, and because depositions of expert witnesses cannot be taken until after the Court 21 decides the pending Discovery Motions (see Dkt. 268), the parties have met and conferred and 22 23 believe that it is in their best interest, and respectfully submit that it is in the Court’s interest as 24 well, to stay the current deadlines for filing dispositive motions (currently May 5) and motions 25 related to expert witnesses (currently May 12) until further order of the Court. This will allow the 26 Court sufficient time to decide the pending Discovery Motions before motions for summary 27 28 STIPULATED MOTION AND ORDER CONTINUING DEADLINES LOCKE LORD LLP 200 VESEY STREET, 20TH FLOOR NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10281 (212) 415-8600 18-CV-1132-TSZ 126350759V.1 - 2- Case 2:18-cv-01132-TSZ Document 295 Filed 05/03/22 Page 3 of 8 1 judgment and motions related to expert witnesses are required to be briefed and noted. The parties 2 also request leave to depose the Fed. R. Civ. P. 30(b)(6) designees of two non-parties, Boston 3 Portfolio Advisers, Inc. (“BPA”) and Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency 4 5 6 7 8 (“PHEAA”). BPA was slow in responding to Plaintiffs’ Subpoena for records and the parties agree that good cause exists to depose both BPA and PHEAA. 6. “The district court may modify the pretrial schedule ‘if it cannot reasonably be met despite the diligence of the party seeking the extension.’” Johnson v. Mammoth Recreations, Inc., 9 975 F.2d 604, 609 (9th Cir. 1992) (quoting Fed. R. Civ. P. 16 advisory committee’s notes). A 10 11 schedule may be modified only for good cause. Fed. R. Civ. P. 16(b)(4); LCR 16(b)(5). When 12 determining whether a party has demonstrated good cause, the court “primarily considers the 13 diligence of the part[ies] seeking the amendment.” Johnson, 975 F.2d at 609. Here, the parties 14 have been diligent in working towards completing discovery before the expiration of the 15 Scheduling Order’s deadline of April 18, 2022. Even though this case is a putative class action 16 17 with six named Plaintiffs, eight defendants, and numerous complicated and sensitive discovery 18 issues, the parties have successfully cooperated and significantly completed fact and class 19 discovery, and have served expert disclosures under Fed. R. Civ. P. 26. The parties are not 20 requesting additional time to complete discovery at this time except for additional time to take the 21 depositions of (1) the parties’ designated expert witnesses; (2) the Fed. R. Civ. P. 30(b)(6) 22 23 designated representative of subpoenaed non-party Boston Portfolio Advisers, Inc.; and (3) the 24 Fed. R. Civ. P. 30(b)(6) designated representative of non-party Pennsylvania Higher Education 25 Assistance Agency. 26 7. The parties are requesting a continuance because of the uncertainty created by the 27 28 STIPULATED MOTION AND ORDER CONTINUING DEADLINES LOCKE LORD LLP 200 VESEY STREET, 20TH FLOOR NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10281 (212) 415-8600 18-CV-1132-TSZ 126350759V.1 - 3- Case 2:18-cv-01132-TSZ Document 295 Filed 05/03/22 Page 4 of 8 1 pending Discovery Motions. Specifically, Plaintiffs believe that it is necessary for the Discovery 2 Motions to be resolved and additional discovery directed by the Court’s decisions on the Discovery 3 Motions, if any, be completed in order to finish briefing for most dispositive motions, and motions 4 5 6 7 8 related to expert witnesses. The parties each believe that it is appropriate and that there is good cause to continue these deadlines until after resolution of the Discovery Motions. 8. The parties therefore stipulate and agree, and respectfully request, that the current deadlines for filing dispositive motions and motions related to expert witnesses be stayed until 9 further order of the Court. Within five (5) days of the Court’s decision on the Discovery Motions, 10 11 the parties will meet and confer and attempt to agree on new filing and noting deadlines for these 12 motions and, if necessary, a comprehensive new schedule that accounts for the continued deadlines 13 to file these motions, as well as the continued noting dates for TSI’s Motion for Summary 14 Judgment (Dkt. 161) and Plaintiffs’ Motion for Class Certification (Dkt. 232), which were 15 previously stayed until further order by the Court’s March 14, 2022 Order (Dkt. 268). If the parties 16 17 18 19 20 cannot agree, the parties shall submit their proposals for a revised schedule to the Court within eight (8) days of the Court’s decision on the Discovery Motions. 9. The next deadline in the current Scheduling Order which the parties are requesting to continue is the May 5, 2022 deadline for filing of dispositive motions. The Scheduling Order 21 currently sets a trial date of October 3, 2022. Accordingly, the instant joint motion complies with 22 23 LCR 7(j) which instructs that “[a] motion for relief from a deadline should, whenever possible, be 24 filed sufficiently in advance of the deadline to allow the court to rule on the motion prior to the 25 deadline.” 26 10. The parties agree that all preexisting deadlines that have passed are not to be 27 28 STIPULATED MOTION AND ORDER CONTINUING DEADLINES LOCKE LORD LLP 200 VESEY STREET, 20TH FLOOR NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10281 (212) 415-8600 18-CV-1132-TSZ 126350759V.1 - 4- Case 2:18-cv-01132-TSZ Document 295 Filed 05/03/22 Page 5 of 8 1 2 continued or resurrected at this time, except as contemplated herein. 11. The parties agree that this stipulation does not affect the filing or noting date of the 3 pending dispositive motion filed by defendants Matthew Cheung or Patenaude and Felix, APC, 4 5 6 (Dkt. 284), or address any party’s position on such motion. STIPULATED this 2nd day of May, 2022. 7 8 Attorneys for Plaintiffs: LEONARD LAW BERRY & BECKETT, PLLP _/s/ Sam Leonard________ Sam Leonard, WSBA #46498 3614 California Ave. SW, #151 Seattle, WA 98116 Telephone: (206) 486-1176 Facsimile: (206) 458-6028 Email: sam@seattledebtdefense.com _/s/ Guy W. Beckett Guy W. Beckett, WSBA #14939 1708 Bellevue Avenue Seattle, WA 98122 Telephone: (206) 441-5444 Facsimile: (206) 838-6346 Email: gbeckett@beckettlaw.com 15 HENRY & DeGRAAF, P.S. NORTHWEST CONSUMER LAW CENTER 16 _/s/ Christina L. Henry___________ Christina L. Henry, WSBA #31273 119 – 1st Ave. S., Ste. 500 Seattle, WA 98104 Telephone: (206) 330-0595 Facsimile: (206) 400-7609 Email: chenry@HDM-legal.com _/s/ Amanda N. Martin______ Amanda N. Martin, WSBA #49581 936 North 34th Street, Suite 300 Seattle, WA 98103 Telephone: (206) 805-0989 Facsimile: (206) 805-1716 Email: Amanda@NWCLC.org 9 10 11 12 13 14 17 18 19 20 21 Attorneys for National Collegiate Student Loan Trust Defendants: 22 LOCKE LORD LLP LOCKE LORD LLP __/s/ Gregory T. Casamento_ Gregory T. Casamento R. James DeRose, III Pro Hac Vice Brookfield Place 200 Vesey St. 20th Flr. _/s/ J. Matthew Goodin____ J. Matthew Goodin Pro Hac Vice 111 S. Wacker Dr., Ste. 4100 Chicago, IL 60606 Telephone: (312) 443-0472 23 24 25 26 27 28 LOCKE LORD LLP 200 VESEY STREET, 20TH FLOOR NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10281 (212) 415-8600 STIPULATED MOTION AND ORDER CONTINUING DEADLINES 18-CV-1132-TSZ 126350759V.1 - 5- Case 2:18-cv-01132-TSZ Document 295 Filed 05/03/22 Page 6 of 8 1 2 New York, NY 10281-2101 Email: gcasamento@lockelord.com rderose@lockelord.com Email: jmgoodin@lockelord.com 3 FOSTER GARVEY PC 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 _/s/ Tim J. Filer____________ Tim J. Filer, WSBA #16285 1111 Third Ave., Ste. 3000 Seattle, WA 98101 Telephone: (206) 447-4000 Email: tim.filer@foster.com Attorneys for Defendant Transworld Systems Inc. SESSIONS, ISRAEL & SHARTLE 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 _/s/ Justin Homes______________ Justin Homes Bryan C. Shartle Pro Hac Vice 3850 N. Causeway Blvd., Ste. 200 Metairie, LA 70002-7227 Telephone: (504) 828-3700 Email: jhomes@sessions.legal bshartle@sessions.legal 18 19 20 Attorneys for Defendants Patenaude & Felix, A.P.C., Matthew Cheung, and Cheung marital community: LEE SMART, P.S., INC. 21 22 23 24 25 __/s/ Marc Rosenberg__________ Marc Rosenberg, WSBA #31034 1800 One Convention Place 701 Pike Street Seattle, WA 98101-3929 Telephone: (206) 624-7900 Email: mr@leesmart.com 26 27 28 STIPULATED MOTION AND ORDER CONTINUING DEADLINES LOCKE LORD LLP 200 VESEY STREET, 20TH FLOOR NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10281 (212) 415-8600 18-CV-1132-TSZ 126350759V.1 - 6- Case 2:18-cv-01132-TSZ Document 295 Filed 05/03/22 Page 7 of 8 1 2 II. ORDER The Court having considered the foregoing stipulated motion, and finding that good cause 3 has been shown for the requested relief, now therefore, it is hereby 4 5 6 ORDERED, as follows: 1. The current deadlines for the parties to file dispositive motions for summary 7 judgment and motions related to expert witnesses as set forth in the Court’s Order Setting Trial 8 and Related Dates (Dkt. 146) are hereby stayed until further order of the Court. 9 2. Within five (5) days of the Court’s decision on Plaintiffs’ motions seeking 10 11 discovery from TSI that are pending before the Court (Dkt. 271, 276) (together, the “Discovery 12 Motions”), the parties shall meet and confer and attempt to agree on new filing and noting 13 deadlines for dispositive motions for summary judgment and motions related to expert witnesses 14 and, if necessary, a comprehensive new schedule that accounts for the continued deadlines to file 15 these motions, as well as the continued noting dates for TSI’s Motion for Summary Judgment (Dkt. 16 17 161) and Plaintiffs’ Motion for Class Certification (Dkt. 232), which were stayed until further 18 order by the Court’s March 14, 2022 Order (Dkt. 268). If the parties cannot agree, the parties shall 19 submit their proposals for a revised schedule to the Court within eight (8) days of the Court’s 20 decision on the Discovery Motions. 21 3. The parties are granted leave to take the depositions of expert witnesses designated 22 23 24 under Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)(2), within 30 days of the Court’s decision on the pending Discovery Motions. 25 26 27 28 STIPULATED MOTION AND ORDER CONTINUING DEADLINES LOCKE LORD LLP 200 VESEY STREET, 20TH FLOOR NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10281 (212) 415-8600 18-CV-1132-TSZ 126350759V.1 - 7- Case 2:18-cv-01132-TSZ Document 295 Filed 05/03/22 Page 8 of 8 1 2 4. The parties are granted leave to take the deposition of the Fed. R. Civ. P. 30(b)(6) designated representative of subpoenaed non-party Boston Portfolio Advisers, Inc. (“BPA”), 3 within 30 days of the Court’s decision on the pending Discovery Motions. 4 5 5. The parties are granted leave to take the deposition of the Fed. R. Civ. P. 30(b)(6) 6 designated representative of non-party Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency, 7 concerning the documents produced by BPA and BPA’s testimony, if any, within 30 days of the 8 Court’s decision on the pending Discovery Motions. 9 6. This order does not affect the filing or noting date of the pending dispositive motion 10 11 12 filed by defendants Matthew Cheung or Patenaude and Felix, APC (Dkt. 284). 7. No other deadlines that have previously passed shall be resurrected at this time. 13 14 DONE THIS 3rd day of May, 2022. 15 16 17 A _____________________________________ Thomas S. Zilly United States District Judge 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 STIPULATED MOTION AND ORDER CONTINUING DEADLINES LOCKE LORD LLP 200 VESEY STREET, 20TH FLOOR NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10281 (212) 415-8600 18-CV-1132-TSZ 126350759V.1 - 8-
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