West v. Hulbert

Filing 48

ORDER DENYING Plaintiff's 47 Motion for Subpoena Duces Tecum Without Prejudice, signed by Magistrate Judge Jennifer L. Thurston on 10/2/18. (Marrujo, C)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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MACK A WEST, Jr.,

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Plaintiff,

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v.

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HULBERT, et al.,

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Case No. 1:16-cv-00046-DAD-JLT (PC)
ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF’S
MOTION FOR SUBPOENA DUCES
TECUM WITHOUT PREJUDICE
(Doc. 47)

Defendants.

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The Court issued the Discovery and Scheduling Order on September 4, 2018. (Doc. 46.)

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This order opened discovery in this case. Three weeks later, Plaintiff filed a motion seeking a

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blank subpoena duces tecum to seek documents pertaining to this action “which a subpoena can

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only produce.” (Doc. 47.)

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Subject to certain requirements, Plaintiff is entitled to subpoena documents, electronically

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stored information, and tangible things from a nonparty. Fed. R. Civ. P. 45. However, the Court

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will consider granting Plaintiff’s request for a subpoena only if the documents or items sought are

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in the possession or control of a nonparty, they are not otherwise available to Plaintiff, and they

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are not within the Defendants’ control. Fed. R. Civ. P. 34.

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In addition, the Court will not issue blank subpoenas. Rather, Plaintiff must identify

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specifically the documents sought and from whom and demonstrate that the documents are

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discoverable in this action. Accordingly, Plaintiff’s motion for a blank subpoenas duces tecum
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(Doc. 47), is DENIED without prejudice.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated:

October 2, 2018

/s/ Jennifer L. Thurston
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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