Williams v. Huffman et al

Filing 75

ORDER signed by Magistrate Judge Kendall J. Newman on 4/23/12; IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that: Plaintiff's March 16, 2012 motion to compel (dkt. no. 68) is denied; Plaintiff's March 22, 2012 motion for summary judgment (dkt. no. 69) is denied without prejudice to its renewal as set forth above; and Defendants' March 27, 2012 motion to postpone briefing (dkt. no. 70) is denied. (Matson, R)

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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MARIO WILLIAMS,

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Plaintiff,

No. 2:11-cv-0638 GEB KJN P

vs.
JASON T. HUFFMAN, M.D., et al.,
Defendants.

ORDER
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On March 16, 2012, plaintiff filed a motion to compel defendant Mefford to

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provide plaintiff with the supplemental responses to plaintiff’s first set of interrogatories. (Dkt.

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No. 68 at 1.) Plaintiff also seeks the sum of $150.00 an hour as his alleged “reasonable

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expenses” in bringing this motion. On April 6, 2012, defendants opposed the motion to compel.

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(Dkt. No. 71.) Defendants provided documentary evidence demonstrating that defendant

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Mefford provided plaintiff with timely objections to the interrogatories, but informed plaintiff

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that because defendant Mefford was on vacation, counsel would send the supplemental responses

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upon defendant Mefford’s return. Defendant Mefford states that although supplemental

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responses were timely provided to counsel, counsel inadvertently failed to provide the

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supplemental responses to plaintiff. On March 21, 2012, plaintiff was served with the

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supplemental responses, and on March 22, 2012, defense counsel spoke with plaintiff by
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telephone conference and explained that a mistake had been made, and that supplemental

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responses had now been served, but plaintiff stated he still “wanted to see how the court ruled on

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his motion.” (Dkt. No. 71 at 2.) Defendants argue that plaintiff’s motion is now moot, and that

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because the discovery cut-off is not until May 31, 2012, plaintiff was not prejudiced by the delay.

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Finally, defendants argue that plaintiff’s initial interrogatories were defective because they were

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not addressed to each individual defendant, but were directed to all defendants in one document.

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Plaintiff did not file a reply to defendants’ opposition.

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Defendants’ objection to the form of the interrogatories is well-taken. Discovery

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requests are to be directed to individual defendants, not to defendants as a group in one

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document. Defendant Mefford has now, although belatedly, provided the supplemental

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responses initially promised. Plaintiff did not file a reply, or raise specific, additional objections

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to defendant Mefford’s supplemental responses. Accordingly, plaintiff’s motion to compel

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supplemental responses is denied. Plaintiff did not itemize the expenses he allegedly incurred in

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bringing the instant motion, and because plaintiff is not represented by counsel, he is not entitled

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to attorney’s fees. Thus, plaintiff’s motion for expenses is denied.

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On March 22, 2012, plaintiff filed a motion for summary judgment. On March

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27, 2012, defendants filed a response in which they seek to postpone briefing on plaintiff’s

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motion for summary judgment to coincide with the filing of defendants' motion for summary

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judgment, due on or before July 31, 2012, the dispositive motions deadline, and after plaintiff’s

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deposition is taken on April 17, 2012. However, defendants did not provide the date they

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contemplated filing their motion for summary judgment.

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Plaintiff contends that Rule 56(a) allows him to file a motion for summary

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judgment “at any time after 20 days from the time a lawsuit [is] commenced.” (Dkt. No. 69 at 2.)

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However, plaintiff refers to an outdated version of Rule 56(a). In 2010, the timing provisions in

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former subdivisions (a) and (c) were superseded, because filing a motion for summary judgment

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at the commencement of an action or before other pretrial proceedings are resolved is premature.
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Rule 56(b) now provides that “Unless a different time is set by local rule or the court orders

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otherwise, a party may file a motion for summary judgment at any time until 30 days after the

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close of all discovery.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(b).

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Here, the court issued a discovery and scheduling order that specifically provided

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for the filing of dispositive motions after the discovery deadline passed. (Dkt. Nos. 31, 67.) On

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March 6, 2012, the discovery deadline was extended to May 31, 2012, and the dispositive

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motions deadline was extended to July 31, 2012. As noted above, a discovery motion was still

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pending, and plaintiff had not yet been deposed. Pending discovery may influence the disputed

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and undisputed facts underlying a motion for summary judgment. Thus, plaintiff’s March 22,

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2012 motion for summary judgment is premature, and is denied without prejudice. However, in

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order to avoid burdening plaintiff, once discovery is resolved and plaintiff’s deposition has been

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taken, plaintiff may renew his motion for summary judgment closer to July 31, 2012, by simply

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filing a notice of renewal of motion for summary judgment, referring defendants to plaintiff’s

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March 22, 2012 motion. Plaintiff need not re-file the specific motion or documents supporting

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the motion unless he intends to modify the motion for summary judgment in light of later-

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obtained discovery. Thus, defendants’ motion for extension of time is denied as moot.

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Good cause appearing, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that:

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1. Plaintiff’s March 16, 2012 motion to compel (dkt. no. 68) is denied;

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2. Plaintiff’s March 22, 2012 motion for summary judgment (dkt. no. 69) is

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denied without prejudice to its renewal as set forth above; and

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3. Defendants’ March 27, 2012 motion to postpone briefing (dkt. no. 70) is

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denied.

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DATED: April 23, 2012

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_____________________________________
KENDALL J. NEWMAN
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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will0638.36

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