Cianchetta v. BMW of North America, LLC, et al

Filing 29

ORDER signed by Magistrate Judge Jeremy D. Peterson on 3/31/2021 SETTING a Pre-Settlement Conference telephonic discussion on 6/30/2021 at 02:00 PM before Magistrate Judge Jeremy D. Peterson. Only the lead attorney from each side should participate. At Judge Peterson's discretion, the joint telephonic discussion may be followed by private telephonic discussions between the judge and each party. (Mena-Sanchez, L)

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

9

FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

10
11

PETER L. CIANCHETTA, ET AL.,

12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28

Plaintiff,
v.
BMW OF NORTH AMERICA, LLC,
Defendant.

Case No. 2:20-cv-00241-KJM-JDP
ORDER (1) RESETTING SETTLEMENT
CONFERENCE, (2) REQUIRING PERSONAL
ATTENDANCE BY CERTAIN
INDIVIDUALS, (3) REQUIRING
SETTLEMENT CONFERENCE
STATEMENT MEETING CERTAIN
PARAMETERS, AND (4) SCHEDULING
PRE-CONFERENCE DISCUSSION

Magistrate Judge Jeremy D. Peterson will hold a settlement conference by Zoom on July
7, 2021, at 10:00 a.m. The Zoom settlement conference invitation will be distributed the week
prior. The court expects that the parties will proceed with the settlement conference in good faith
and attempt to resolve all or part of the case. If any party believes that the settlement conference
will not be productive, that party shall so inform the court as far in advance of the settlement
conference as possible. Unless otherwise specifically authorized by the court in advance of the
settlement conference, the following individuals must participate in the settlement conference:
(1) all of the attorney(s) who will try the case; (2) the parties; and (3) individuals with full
authority to negotiate and settle the case, on any terms.
No later than June 23, 2021, each party must submit to Judge Peterson’s chambers at
[e-mail] an updated confidential settlement conference statement. These

1

statements should neither be filed on the docket nor served on any other party. The statements

2

should be marked “CONFIDENTIAL” and should state the date and time of the conference.

3

While brevity is appreciated, each statement must include:

4

(1) a brief recitation of the facts;

5

(2) a discussion of the strengths and weaknesses of the case, from your party’s

6

perspective;

7
8

(3) an itemized estimate of your party’s expected costs for further discovery, pretrial, and
trial matters, in specific dollar terms;

9
10

(4) your best estimate of the probability that plaintiff will obtain a finding of liability
should this case proceed to trial, in percentage terms;

11
12

(5) should this case proceed to trial and defendant be found liable, please provide the
following, in specific dollar terms:

13
14

(a) a realistic high-end recovery estimate (i.e., realistic best- or worst-case
scenario)

15
16

(b) a realistic low-end recovery estimate (i.e., realistic worst- or best-case
scenario), and

17

(c) a best estimate of the most likely outcome;

18

(6) a history of settlement discussions, including:

19

(a) a statement of your expectations for settlement discussions;

20

(b) a listing of any past and present settlement offers from any party (including all

21

terms);

22
23

(c) whether your party would consider making the opening offer or demand, and
what that offer might be 1;

24
25

(7) a list of the individuals who will be participating in the settlement conference on your
party’s behalf, including each participant’s name and, if appropriate, title; and

26

(8) identification of any related cases or of any other cases that the parties might wish to

27
1

28

Please note that Judge Peterson will consider this response, among others, in evaluating whether
proceeding with a settlement conference appears worthwhile.

1

discuss at this settlement conference;

2
3

(9) a completed worksheet (blank version attached) highlighting your responses to certain
of the above questions.

4

Judge Peterson will hold a pre-settlement conference telephone discussion on June 30,

5

2021 at 2:00 p.m. (dial-in number: 1-888-557-8511; passcode: 1273468). Only the lead attorney

6

from each side 2 should participate. At Judge Peterson’s discretion, the joint telephonic discussion

7

may be followed by private telephonic discussions between the judge and each party.

8
9

IT IS SO ORDERED.

10
11

Dated: March 31, 2021

12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
2

28

The court expects that the attorneys participating in the telephone discussion will also
participate in the settlement conference.

Pre-Settlement Worksheet
Please fill in each value below
Additional cost to your party expected
for . . . discovery
. . . pretrial
. . . trial
Estimated probability of liability
finding
Realistic high-end estimate of recovery
by P
Realistic low-end estimate of recovery
by P
Best estimate of recovery by P
Last offer/demand (if any) previously
made by your party
Last offer/demand (if any) previously
made by opposing party
Proposed next offer/demand by your
party

$
$
$
%
$
$
$
$
$
$