Federal Trade Commission v. ELH Consulting LLC, et al

Filing 121

ORDER re 120 Motion to Continue Deadline for Filing Summary Judgment filed by Federal Trade Commission. It is ORDERED that the Plaintiff shall file a Supplemental Memorandum in support of its motion answering the questions listed in the attached Order, no later than October 8, 2013. (See attached PDF for details). Signed by Senior Judge Frederick J Martone on 10/3/13. (JAMA)

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE DISTRICT OF ARIZONA

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Federal Trade Commission,
Plaintiff,

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No. CV-12-02246-PHX-FJM
ORDER

v.
ELH Consulting LLC, et al.,
Defendants.

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The court has before it "Plaintiff's Motion for Continuance due to United States

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Government Cessation" (doc. 120). The FTC asserts that its appropriations have lapsed

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and its lawyers cannot act. It seeks a postponement of the deadline to file a motion for

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summary judgment.

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We acknowledge that some parts of the government have "shut down" due to the

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failure of the House of Representatives to pass an unconditional appropriations bill. But

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many Executive agencies have maintained their "essential" functions.

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judiciary. Only "non-essential" employees have been furloughed.

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As has the

Because deciding cases and controversies under Article III of the Constitution is

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an "essential" function of the judicial branch, this court is operating.

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appearing in its cases have a professional obligation to their clients to participate.

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The lawyers

Thus, we need more information from Plaintiff before we can rule on the motion.
Has the entire FTC been declared "non-essential”?

Are any lawyers in the FTC

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categorized as "essential"? If the latter, why can't an "essential" lawyer prepare and file

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the motion for summary judgment?

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It is ORDERED that the Plaintiff shall file a Supplemental Memorandum in
support of its motion answering these questions no later than October 8, 2013.
Dated this 3rd day of October, 2013.

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