Board of Trustees of the Sheet Metal Workers Health Care Plan of Northern California et al -v- Vigil

Filing 51

ORDER by Judge Samuel Conti adopting Report and Recommendations as to 47 Report and Recommendations. (sclc1, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 3/18/2011)

Board of Trustees of the Sheet Metal Workers Health Care Plan of Northern...ifornia et al -v- Vigil

Doc. 51

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE SHEET ) Case No. 09-5138 SC METAL WORKERS HEALTH CARE PLAN OF ) NORTHERN CALIFORNIA, et al., ) ORDER ADOPTING REPORT AND ) RECOMMENDATION Plaintiffs, ) ) v. ) ) ) JOSE RODNEY VIGIL, ) ) Defendant. ) Magistrate Judge Edward M. Chen has filed a Report and Recommendation regarding the Motion for Default Judgment filed by Plaintiff Board of Trustees of the Sheet Metal Workers Health Care Plan of Northern California ("Plaintiffs") against Jose Rodney Vigil ("Defendant"). ECF No. 47 ("Rep. & Rec."). Magistrate Judge IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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Chen recommends that this Court grant Plaintiffs' motion and award Plaintiffs $741.39 in liquidated damages, $243.29 in interest, $555 in attorneys' fees, and $435 in costs. Id.

Plaintiffs agree to every finding by Magistrate Judge Chen save one -- they argue that Magistrate Judge Chen incorrectly calculated liquidated damages using a rate of ten percent based on his finding that Plaintiffs' proposed twenty percent rate was unsupported by the evidence. ECF No. 50 ("Rep. & Rec. Resp.").

Plaintiffs argue that documents filed in support of their Motion "clearly show the trustees took action to adopt 20% liquidated

Dockets.Justia.com

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For the Northern District of California

damages," and they conclude that Magistrate Judge Chen did not consider these supporting documents and ask this Court to grant the Report and Recommendation with an increased liquidated damages award. Id.

If Magistrate Judge Chen failed to consider these documents, it was likely because they were not cited to in either Plaintiffs' original Motion or their re-noticed Motion for Default Judgment. ECF Nos. 19, 39. A district court's review of a matter referred to

a magistrate judge is limited to the record of proceedings before that magistrate judge. Civ. L.R. 72-3(c). However, neither the

United States District Court

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magistrate judge nor this Court has an obligation to "paw over the files without assistance from the parties," and this Court has discretion to refuse to consider evidence that the offering party fails to cite with sufficient specificity. Orr v. Bank of America,

NT & SA, 285 F.3d 764, 775 (9th Cir. 2002); see also Forsberg v. Pac. Nw. Bell Tel. Co., 840 F.2d 1409, 1418 (9th Cir. 1988) (holding that in the context of summary judgment, a court "is not required to comb the record to find some reason to deny a motion"). As such, the Court ADOPTS Magistrate Judge Chen's Report and Recommendation in its entirety. The Court AWARDS Plaintiffs The damages consist of: $741.39

damages in the amount of $1974.68.

in liquidated damages, $243.29 in interest, $555 in attorneys' fees, and $435 in costs.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

Dated:

March 18, 2011 UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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