Bohnel et al v. Jetblue Airways Corporation

Filing 29

ORDER signed by Senior Judge William B. Shubb on 8/7/19 GRANTING 24 Motion to Continue. MODIFYING the Scheduling Order as follows: Fact Discovery completion by 12/30/19. Expert witness disclosure by 6/8/2020. Rebuttal witness disclosure by 7/6/ 2020 Discovery completion deadline 8/3/2020. Dispositive Motion deadline 9/14/2020. The Final Pretrial Conference CONTINUED to 10/26/2020 at 01:30 PM. Jury Trial CONTINUED to 1/20/2021 at 09:00 AM in Courtroom 5 (WBS) before Senior Judge William B. Shubb. (Mena-Sanchez, L)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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ERICKA BOHNEL, an individual;
ROSA MARTINEZ, an individual,
Plaintiffs,

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NO. 2:18-cv-00081-WBSDMC

v.
JETBLUE AIRWAYS CORPORATION,

ORDER RE: PLAINTIFFS’
MOTION TO CONTINUE
TRIALS

Defendant.

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MICHELLE HILL, an individual;
ARIEL EPSTEIN POLLACK, an
individual,

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NO. 2:17-cv-01604-WBS-DB

Plaintiffs,
v.
JETBLUE AIRWAYS CORPORATION,
Defendant.

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Plaintiffs assert personal injury claims against

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JetBlue arising out of an August 2016 turbulence incident on

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JetBlue Airways Flight 429 from Boston Logan International

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Airport to Sacramento International Airport.

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Docket No. 1); Bohnel Compl. (Bohnel Docket No. 1).)

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discovery in Bohnel et al v. Jetblue Airways Corporation (2:18-

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cv-00081-WBS-DMC) has been consolidated with that in Hill, et al

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v. Jetblue Airways Corporation (No. 2:17-cv-01604-WBS-DB). (See

(Hill Compl. (Hill

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Bohnel Docket No. 17; Hill Docket No. 26.)

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the same August 2016 turbulence incident.

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court is plaintiffs’ Motion to Continue Trial Date.

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Liability

Docket No. 24; Hill Docket No. 30.)

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Both cases concern
Presently before the
(See Bohnel

Plaintiffs ask this court to shift the trial dates and

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the discovery deadlines in Hill and Bohnel forward so that they

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may have time to conduct discovery before trial.1

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not object to the continuance of the trial dates in Hill and

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Bohnel.2

Defendant does

(See Response to Pl.’s Mot. to Continue Trial at 2

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The National Transportation Safety Board is currently
investigating the August 2016 turbulence incident that gave rise
to plaintiffs’ alleged injuries. (See Luke Decl. Ex 1 (Hill
Docket No. 31-1).) As a result, JetBlue is subject to an
investigative hold by the Board and JetBlue’s ability to respond
to plaintiffs’ discovery requests is circumscribed by federal
regulations. (See id.) Plaintiffs state that the investigative
hold has hampered their ability to conduct discovery and placed
the parties in a “holding pattern.” (Mot. to Continue Trial Date
at 5.)
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Confusingly, JetBlue’s Response to Plaintiff’s Motion
to Continue Trial Date indicates that it objects “to the
consolidation of the damages trial portion of all four
[p]laintiffs’ cases.” (See Response to Pl.’s Mot. to Continue
Trial at 2 (Hill Docket No. 32; Bohnel Docket No. 26).) Given
that plaintiffs are moving to continue the trial dates in Hill
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(Bohnel Docket No. 26; Hill Docket No. 32).)
In light of plaintiffs’ diligence in attempting to

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conduct discovery in a timely manner, the need for a continuance,

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the lack of objection to the continuance, and the potential

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prejudice to plaintiffs if their motion is denied, the court will

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grant plaintiffs’ Motion to Continue Trial.

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24; Hill Docket No. 30.)

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Land, More or Less, Situated in Mariposa Cty., 791 F.2d 666, 671

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(9th Cir. 1985)(discussing factors to be evaluated by courts

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(Bohnel Docket No.

See United States v. 2.61 Acres of

considering motions to continue trial).
Accordingly, the court modifies the scheduling orders
in Hill (Docket No. 26) and Bohnel (Docket No. 17) as follows:

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Fact discovery completion

December 30, 2019.

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Expert witness disclosure

June 8, 2020

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Rebuttal witness disclosure

July 6, 2020

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Discovery completion deadline

August 3, 2020

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Dispositive motion deadline
Final pretrial conference

September 14, 2020
October 26, 2020 at
1:30 p.m.
January 5, 2021 at
9:00 a.m.
January 20, 2021 at
9:00 a.m.

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Hill Trial

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Bohnell Trial

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IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that Plaintiffs’ Motion to
Continue the Trial Date (Hill Docket No. 30; Bohnel Docket No.
24) is GRANTED and the dates and deadlines of the Status
(Pretrial Scheduling) Order (Bohnel Docket No. 17; Hill Docket
No. 26) are modified as described herein.

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and Bohnel, and not to consolidate, the court will ignore
JetBlue’s objections to the consolidation of the trials on the
damages issue.
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Dated:

August 7, 2019

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