Curry v. Contra Costa County

Filing 38

Notice of Reference and Order re Discovery Procedures, denying 36 Letter filed by Contra Costa County without prejudice. Joint letter due by 7/12/2013. Signed by Magistrate Judge Donna M. Ryu on 06/24/2013. (dmrlc1, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 6/24/2013)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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For the Northern District of California

United States District Court

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JERRI CURRY,

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Plaintiff(s),

No. C-12-03940 RS (DMR)
NOTICE OF REFERENCE AND ORDER
RE DISCOVERY PROCEDURES

v.

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CONTRA COSTA COUNTY,

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Defendant(s).
___________________________________/

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TO ALL PARTIES AND COUNSEL OF RECORD:

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The above matter has been referred to Magistrate Judge Donna M. Ryu for resolution of the

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parties’ June 18, 2013 joint letter (Docket No. 36, "Joint Letter") regarding their discovery dispute,

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and for all discovery matters.

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The court has reviewed the parties' June 18, 2013 letter regarding Defendant's motion to

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compel production of eleven documents listed on Plaintiff's privilege log. It appears that some or all

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of these documents are also responsive to a subpoena for documents served by Defendant on

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Plaintiff's union, non-party Public Employees Union Local One, to which the union asserted various

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objections. (Joint Letter 5-6.) However, Public Employees Union Local One did not participate in

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the parties’ joint letter. Accordingly, the June 18, 2013 letter is denied without prejudice. The

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parties are ordered to meet and confer with non-party Public Employees Union Local One in

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compliance with the court’s Standing Order (see section below entitled "Resolution of Discovery

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Disputes"). Any joint letter regarding the discovery dispute shall be filed no later than July 12,

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2013. Discovery letter briefs must be e-filed under the Civil Events category of Motions and

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Related Filings > Motions - General > "Discovery Letter Brief."

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Parties shall comply with the procedures in this order, the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure,

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and the Northern District of California’s Local Rules, General Orders, and Standing Orders. Local

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rules, general orders, standing orders, and instructions for using the Court's Electronic Case Filing

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system are available at http://www.cand.uscourts.gov. Failure to comply with any of the rules or

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orders may be a ground for sanctions.

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In order to respond to discovery disputes in a flexible, cost-effective and efficient manner,

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For the Northern District of California

United States District Court

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RESOLUTION OF DISCOVERY DISPUTES

the court uses the following procedure. The parties shall not file formal discovery motions. Instead,

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as required by the federal and local rules, the parties shall first meet and confer to try to resolve their

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disagreements. The meet and confer session must be in person or by telephone, and may not be

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conducted by letter, e-mail, or fax. If disagreements remain, the parties shall file a joint letter no

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later than five business days after the meet and confer session, unless otherwise directed by the

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court. Lead trial counsel for both parties must sign the letter, which shall include an attestation

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that the parties met and conferred in person or by telephone regarding all issues prior to filing the

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letter. Going issue-by-issue, the joint letter shall describe each unresolved issue, summarize each

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party’s position with appropriate legal authority; and provide each party’s final proposed

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compromise before moving to the next issue. The joint letter shall not exceed ten pages without

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leave of court. Parties are expected to plan for and cooperate in preparing the joint letter so

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that each side has adequate time to address the arguments. In the rare instance that a joint letter

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is not possible, each side may submit a letter not to exceed four pages, which shall include an

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explanation of why a joint letter was not possible. The parties shall submit one exhibit to the letter

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that only sets forth each disputed discovery request in full, followed immediately by the objections

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and/or responses thereto. No other information shall be included in any such exhibit. No other

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exhibits shall be submitted without prior approval by the court. The court will review the

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submission(s) and determine whether formal briefing or proceedings are necessary. Discovery

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letter briefs must be e-filed under the Civil Events category of Motions and Related Filings >

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Motions - General > "Discovery Letter Brief".

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In the event that a discovery hearing is ordered, the court has found that it is often efficient

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and beneficial for counsel to appear in person. This provides the opportunity, where appropriate, to

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engage counsel in resolving aspects of the discovery dispute while remaining available to rule on

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any disputes that counsel are not able to resolve. For this reason, the court expects counsel to appear

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in person. Permission for a party to attend by telephone may be granted, in the court's discretion,

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upon written request made at least one week in advance of the hearing if the court determines that

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good cause exists to excuse personal attendance, and that personal attendance is not needed in order
to have an effective discovery hearing. The facts establishing good cause must be set forth in the

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For the Northern District of California

United States District Court

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request.

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In emergencies during discovery events (such as depositions), any party may, after

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exhausting good faith attempts to resolve disputed issues, seek judicial intervention pursuant to Civil

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L.R. 37-1(b) by contacting the court through the courtroom deputy. If the court is unavailable, the

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discovery event shall proceed with objections noted for the record.

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CHAMBERS COPIES AND PROPOSED ORDERS

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Pursuant to Civil L.R. 5-1(e)(7) and 5-2(b), parties must lodge an extra paper copy of certain

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filings and mark it as a copy for “Chambers.” Please three-hole punch the chambers copy and

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submit it to the Oakland Clerk’s Office.

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Any stipulation or proposed order submitted by an e-filing party shall be submitted by email

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to [e-mail] as a word processing attachment on the same day the document is e-

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filed. This address should only be used for this stated purpose unless otherwise directed by the

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court.

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PRIVILEGE LOGS

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If a party withholds information that is responsive to a discovery request by claiming that it

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is privileged or otherwise protected from discovery, that party shall promptly prepare and provide a

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privilege log that is sufficiently detailed and informative for the opposing party to assess whether a

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document’s designation as privileged is justified. See Fed.R.Civ.P. 26(b)(5). The privilege log shall

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set forth the privilege relied upon and specify separately for each document or for each category of

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similarly situated documents:

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(a) the title and description of the document, including number of pages or

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Bates-number range;

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(b) the subject matter addressed in the document;

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(c) the identity and position of its author(s);

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(d) the identity and position of all addressees and recipients;

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(e) the date the document was prepared and, if different, the date(s) on which it was

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sent to or shared with persons other than its author(s); and
(f) the specific basis for the claim that the document is privileged or protected.

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For the Northern District of California

United States District Court

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Communications involving trial counsel that post-date the filing of the complaint need not be

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placed on a privilege log. Failure to furnish this information promptly may be deemed a waiver of

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the privilege or protection.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.

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Dated: June 24, 2013

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DONNA M. RYU
United States Magistrate Judge

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