Protegrity Corp v. Informatica Corporation

Filing 85

CONSOLIDATION AND CASE MANAGEMENT ORDER. Signed by Judge James Donato on 2/25/2015. (jdlc3S, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 2/25/2015)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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IN RE: PROTEGRITY CORPORATION
AND PROTEGRITY USA, INC., PATENT
LITIGATION

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MDL No. 2600
CONSOLIDATION AND CASE
MANAGEMENT ORDER UPON
TRANSFER PURSUANT TO 28 U.S.C. §
1407(A)

United States District Court
Northern District of California

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Now that the JPML process is complete, the Court issues this consolidation and case

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management order. This order supersedes all prior consolidation and case management orders that

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were issued in the related cases discussed below.
CONSOLIDATION OF RELATED CASES

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1.

The Court has already found that these cases are related cases under Civil Local

Rule 3-12:

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a. 3:14-cv-02588-JD

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b. 3:14-cv-03151-JD

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c. 3:14-cv-03423-JD

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d. 3:14-cv-04283-JD

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2.

Other cases have been transferred to this Court pursuant to the Judicial Panel on

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Multidistrict Litigation’s order of February 6, 2015, or because they are tag-along actions as

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defined in Rule 1.1(h) of the Rules of Procedure of the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation.

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3.

Pursuant to Rule 42(a) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the Court now

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consolidates all these cases into Case No. 3:15-md-02600-JD for all pretrial proceedings before

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this Court. All filings and submissions from here on should be captioned: “In re: Protegrity

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Corporation and Protegrity USA, Inc., Patent Litigation” under the 3:15-md-02600-JD case

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number.

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If a related action is subsequently filed in or transferred to this district, it will be

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consolidated into this action for all pretrial purposes. This order will apply to every such related

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action, without a further order of the Court. A party that objects to consolidation, or to any other

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provision of this order, must file an application for relief from this order within ten (10) days after

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the date on which the party’s counsel receives a copy of this order.

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5.

This order is entered without prejudice to the rights of any party to apply for

severance of any claim or action, for good cause shown.
MASTER DOCKET AND CAPTION

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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6.

The docket in Case No. 3:15-md-02600-JD will constitute the master docket, and

the file in that action will be the master file for every action in the consolidated action.
7.

When a pleading applies only to some, but not all, of the member actions, the

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document must list the docket number for each individual action to which the document applies

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immediately under the master caption. Any document not identified in that way will be presumed

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to apply to all member cases.

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8.

The parties must file a Notice of Related Cases pursuant to Civil Local Rule 3-12

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whenever a case that should be consolidated into this action is filed in, or transferred to, this

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District. If the Court determines that the case is related, the Clerk of the Court will:

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a. file a copy of this order in the separate file for such action;

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b. serve on plaintiff’s counsel in the new case a copy of this order;

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c. direct that this order be served upon defendants in the new case; and

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d. make the appropriate entry in the master docket (Case No. 3:15-md-02600-JD).

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9.

If there are any disputes about whether a new action should be related to this

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consolidated action, they must promptly be brought to the Court’s attention or any objection may

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be deemed waived.

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DATE AND AGENDA FOR INITIAL CASE MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE
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The initial case management conference will be held on Wednesday, April 1,
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2015, at 1:30 p.m. before the Honorable James Donato in Courtroom 11, 19th Floor, United

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States District Court, 450 Golden Gate Ave., San Francisco, California.

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Counsel should be prepared at the conference to suggest procedures that will

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facilitate the expeditious, economical, and just resolution of this litigation. In addition, items on

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the agenda will include the filing of a consolidated amended complaint, amendment of other

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pleadings, a proposed discovery plan, the appointment of one or more experts under Federal Rule

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of Evidence 706, and a timetable for anticipated motions. Counsel should confer and seek

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consensus to the fullest extent possible. Plaintiffs’ counsel must be prepared to inform the Court

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whether they intend to file a consolidated amended complaint, and if so, by what date.

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Each party represented by counsel must appear at the initial case management

United States District Court
Northern District of California

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conference through its lead attorney who will have primary responsibility for representing the

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party in this litigation. To minimize costs and facilitate a manageable conference, parties with

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similar interests may, to the extent practicable, arrange to have an attending attorney represent the

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party’s interest at the conference. A party will not, by designating another party’s attorney to

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represent that party’s interest at the conference, be precluded from other representation during the

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litigation, nor will attendance at the conference waive objections to jurisdiction, venue, or service.

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13.

In a similar vein, the Court expects that parties with similar interests -- in other

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words, the parties on the same side of the “v.” -- will consolidate all filings and submissions as

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much as possible, including for the joint case management statement, which will be due on

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Wednesday, March 25, 2015. The goal is to avoid burying the Court in multiple versions of

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largely identical filings. Because the Court is ordering maximum consolidation of all filings, no

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party will be allowed at any time in the case, including before the jury, to refer to that

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consolidation as evidence of collusion or cooperation by the parties involved.

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DEFENDANTS’ RESPONSE DEADLINE AND STATUS OF DISCOVERY
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Defendants are granted an open-ended extension of time for responding to the

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complaint(s) -- or a consolidated complaint -- pending further order of the Court. In addition,

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pending the initial case management conference and further orders of the Court, any outstanding

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discovery proceedings are stayed and no discovery shall be initiated.
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Parties and counsel are directed to carefully review the Court’s standing orders on

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civil discovery and civil cases for guidance on the Court’s procedures. The Court handles all

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discovery disputes itself. Discovery disputes or issues that are not presented in strict conformance

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with the Court’s standing orders will be rejected.
PRESERVATION OF EVIDENCE

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Parties and counsel are reminded of the duty to preserve evidence that may be

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relevant to this action. The duty extends to documents, data, and tangible things (with those terms

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to be interpreted in the broadest possible manner that is consistent with the Federal Rules of Civil

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Procedure) in the possession, custody or control of the parties to this action, regardless of
geographic location, as well as any employees, agents, contractors, or other non-parties who

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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possess materials reasonably anticipated to be subject to discovery in this action. Counsel are

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under an obligation to the Court to exercise all reasonable efforts to identify and notify parties and

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non-parties, including employees of corporate or institutional parties, whether they are located in

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the United States or abroad. The Court advises parties and counsel that any failure to honor this

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obligation will result in sanctions ranging from monetary sanctions to issue or evidence

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preclusion, depending on the gravity of the failure.
COMMUNICATIONS WITH THE COURT AND AMONG COUNSEL

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17.

All substantive communications with the Court must be in writing and e-filed on

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the master docket. Counsel are advised to keep phone calls to the Court’s courtroom deputy to a

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minimum. Outside of an emergency of some sort, or to raise a discovery issue during a deposition

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as provided for in the standing order on discovery, no one should need to call the deputy. No

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party or counsel should try to contact chambers’ staff for any reason. Also, please make sure all

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chambers’ copies are delivered to the Clerk of the Court and not directly to chambers. Chambers

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does not accept deliveries.

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18.

The Court recognizes that cooperation by and among plaintiffs’ counsel and by and

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among defendants’ counsel is essential for the orderly and expeditious resolution of this litigation.

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Consequently, the Court makes clear that the communication of information among and between

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plaintiffs’ counsel and among and between defendants’ counsel will not be deemed a waiver of the
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attorney-client privilege or the protection afforded by the attorney work product doctrine, and any

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such cooperative efforts shall in no way be used against any plaintiff by any defendant or against

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any defendant by any plaintiff.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.

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Dated: February 25, 2015
______________________________________
JAMES DONATO
United States District Judge

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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