Deerpoint Group, Inc. v. Agrigenix, LLC et al

Filing 109

AMENDED SCHEDULING ORDER and vacating Pretrial and Trial Dates signed by Magistrate Judge Barbara A. McAuliffe on 6/11/2020. (Lundstrom, T)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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DEERPOINT GROUP, INC.,
Plaintiff,

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v.

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AMENDED SCHEDULING ORDER AND
VACATING PRETRIAL AND TRIAL DATES

AGRIGENIX, LLC, et al.,

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Case No. 1:18-cv-00536-AWI-BAM

Defendants.
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This Court conducted a further scheduling conference on June 11, 2020, following amendment

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of the operative complaint to add a defendant and a claim for patent infringement. Counsel Benjamin

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Kleinman, Jon Michaelson, Mansi Shah and Adam Wiley appeared by telephone on behalf of Plaintiff

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Deerpoint Group, Inc. Counsel Mark Miller and William Nelson appeared by telephone on behalf of

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Defendants Agrigenix, LLC, Sean Mahoney, and Custom AG Formulators, Inc.

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A.

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Claim Construction
After discussion with counsel and based upon the procedures proposed in the parties’ Third

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Updated Joint Scheduling Report (Doc. No. 107), the Court SETS the following deadlines related to

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claim construction only:

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1.

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2.

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3.

Plaintiff’s Disclosure of Asserted Claims
and Preliminary Infringement Contentions
(including associated document production):

Completed.

Defendant’s Preliminary Invalidity Contentions
(including associated document production):

July 7, 2020

Parties Exchange Identification of Claim Terms for
Construction and Preliminary Claim Constructions
(including citation to and production of associated
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extrinsic evidence):

July 21, 2020

Parties Exchange Responsive Claim Constructions
(including citation to and production of associated
extrinsic evidence):

August 11, 2020

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Parties File Joint Claim Construction Statement:

September 1, 2020

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Claim Construction Discovery Deadline:

September 29, 2020

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Parties File Opening Claim Construction Briefs:

October 13, 2020

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Parties File Responsive Claim Construction Briefs:

October 27, 2020

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Parties File Reply Claim Construction Briefs:

November 3, 2020

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Claim Construction Hearing:

November 23, 2020
Time: 1:30 p.m.
Dept: 2 (AWI)

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4.

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The parties are advised that compliance with the claim construction discovery deadline set

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forth above requires motions to compel be filed and heard sufficiently in advance of the cutoff so that

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the Court may grant effective relief within the allotted discovery time. A parties’ failure to have a

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discovery dispute heard sufficiently in advance of the discovery cutoff may result in denial of the

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motion as untimely.

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Within three (3) weeks after the Court’s claim construction ruling, the parties are directed to

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contact to the Court to set a date for further scheduling regarding the patent infringement claim.

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B.

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Non-Dispositive Motions
It is anticipated that the parties may conduct discovery during the pendency of claim

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construction and the scope of discovery shall be as set forth in Federal Rule of Civil Procedure

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26(b)(1). Non-dispositive motions, including motions to compel, are heard on Fridays at 9:00 a.m.

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before the Honorable Barbara A. McAuliffe, United States Magistrate Judge, in Courtroom 8. Before

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scheduling such motions, the parties shall comply with Local Rule 230 or Local Rule 251. Counsel

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must comply with Local Rule 251 with respect to discovery disputes or the motion will be denied

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without prejudice and dropped from calendar. In addition to filing a joint statement electronically, a

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copy of the joint statement shall also be sent Judge McAuliffe’s chambers by email to

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[e-mail]. Counsel for the parties are additionally required to conduct at least

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one telephonic (or in person) conference as part of their obligations to meet and confer in good faith

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to resolve their discovery dispute prior to seeking judicial intervention. The parties are further

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cautioned that boilerplate objections to written discovery will be summarily denied.
Upon stipulation of the parties, Judge McAuliffe will resolve discovery disputes by informal

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telephonic conference outside the formal procedures of the Local Rules and Federal Rules of Civil

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Procedure governing noticed motions to compel. The procedures for requesting an informal

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telephonic conference are set forth in Judge McAuliffe’s Case Management Procedures located on the

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Court’s website, http://www.caed.uscourts.gov. If the parties stipulate to an informal ruling on a

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discovery dispute that arises during a deposition, they may request an informal ruling during the

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deposition by contacting Judge McAuliffe’s Courtroom Deputy, Esther Valdez, by telephone at (559)

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499-5788.
The parties are advised that unless prior leave of the Court is obtained, all moving and

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opposition briefs or legal memorandum in civil cases before Judge McAuliffe shall not exceed twenty-

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five (25) pages. Reply briefs by the moving party shall not exceed ten (10) pages. These page

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limitations do not include exhibits. Briefs that exceed this page limitation, or are sought to be filed

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without leave, may not be considered by the Court.
Counsel or pro se parties may appear and argue non-dispositive motions before Judge

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McAuliffe by telephone by dialing the court’s teleconference line at [phone] and entering

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Access Code 3219139, provided they indicate their intent to appear telephonically on their pleadings

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or by email to [e-mail] at least one week prior to the hearing.

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C.

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Settlement Conference
A Settlement Conference has not been scheduled. The parties are advised to contact the Court

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if they determine that a settlement conference would be beneficial. If a settlement conference is set,

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the parties are advised that unless otherwise permitted in advance by the Court, the attorneys who will

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try the case shall appear at the settlement conference with the parties and the person or persons having

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full authority to negotiate and settle the case, on any terms, at the conference.
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D.

Modification of Scheduling Conference Order – Non-Patent Infringement Claims

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The parties are proceeding on parallel pre-trial tracks for the patent infringement and non-patent

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infringement claims. Pursuant to the parties’ Third Updated Joint Scheduling Report, and good cause

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appearing, the deadlines set forth in the Court’s Scheduling Order issued on August 16, 2019, are

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modified as follows:

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Non-Expert Discovery Deadline:

December 15, 2020

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Expert Disclosure:

January 26, 2021

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Supplemental Expert Disclosure:

February 23, 2021

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Expert Discovery Deadline:

March 23, 2021

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Dispositive Motion Filing Deadline:

April 20, 2021

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Additionally, to the extent not already addressed, the pretrial conference currently set for April

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21, 2021, at 10:00 AM in Courtroom 2 (AWI) before District Judge Anthony W. Ishii and the trial

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currently set for June 22, 2021, at 8:30 AM in Courtroom 2 (AWI) before District Judge Anthony W.

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Ishii are HEREBY VACATED. As necessary and appropriate, a further scheduling conference will be

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set following the dispositive motion filing deadline. The parties are directed to contact the Court to set

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up a further scheduling conference following the rulings on dispositive issues.

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E.

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Effect of this Order
The foregoing order represents the best estimate of the Court and the parties as to the agenda

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most suitable for this case. Requests to alter the deadlines contained herein will not be considered

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unless they are accompanied by affidavits or declarations, and where appropriate attached exhibits,

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which establish good cause for granting the relief requested.

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Failure to comply with this order may result in the imposition of sanctions, including but not

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limited to, dismissal of this action.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.

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Dated:

/s/ Barbara

June 11, 2020

A. McAuliffe

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UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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