Delk et al v. Bank of America, N.A.

Filing 37

ORDER granting 36 Motion to Compel; granting 36 Motion to extend time. The deadline is extended to allow Defendant to disclose its expert psychiatrist report within 14 days of the examinations. Plaintiffs shall submit to the examinations. Signed by Magistrate Judge Philip R. Lammens on 5/4/2015. (SEJ)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF FLORIDA
OCALA DIVISION
DONALD DELK and SANDRA DELK,
Plaintiffs,
v.

Case No: 5:14-cv-469-Oc-32PRL

BANK OF AMERICA, N.A.
Defendant.

ORDER
Pending before the Court is Defendant’s Renewed Motion to Compel Mental Examinations
of Plaintiffs and to Extend Defendant’s Deadline to Disclose Its Expert Psychiatrist’s Report of
Plaintiffs’ Mental Examinations. (Doc. 36). Defendant requests that the Court order Plaintiffs
to submit to mental examinations on May 27, 2015, and an extension of its expert witness report
deadline to allow Defendant to disclose its expert psychiatrist report within 14 days of the
examinations.
The Court previously denied without prejudice a similar motion because Defendant failed
to comply with Local Rule 3.01(g). (Doc. 34). In an effort to comply with the Court’s Order to
clearly articulate Plaintiffs’ position on the instant motion, Defendant now states that “Plaintiffs
agree to the examination so long as Defendant files a motion to compel the examination and obtains
an order granting said motion.” (Doc. 36, p. 5). For the sake of expediency, the Court construes
this language as a certification that Plaintiffs do not oppose this motion.
Rule 35(a)(1) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure provides that the court may order a
party whose mental condition is in controversy to submit to a mental examination by a suitably

licensed examiner. Pursuant to Rule 35(a)(2), the Court’s order may be made only on motion for
good cause and on notice to all parties and the person to be examined, and “must specify the time,
place, manner, conditions, and scope of the examination, as well as the person or persons who will
perform it.”
Here, Defendant argues that Plaintiffs’ intentional infliction of emotional distress claims
containing allegations of depression and anxiety, coupled with certain statements in their discovery
responses, puts Plaintiffs’ mental states at issue.

Plaintiffs, apparently, do not oppose the

examinations. Therefore, Defendant proposes that Dr. Tonia L. Werner, M.D., Co-Chief of the
Division of Adult Psychiatry at the University of Florida, conduct both Plaintiffs’ mental
examinations on May 27, 2015 at Plaintiffs’ home.
Thus, upon due consideration, the Court GRANTS Defendant’s Renewed Motion to
Compel Mental Examinations of Plaintiffs and to Extend Defendant’s Deadline to Disclose Its
Expert Psychiatrist’s Report of Plaintiffs’ Mental Examinations. (Doc. 36). The deadline is
extended to allow Defendant to disclose its expert psychiatrist report within 14 days of the
examinations. Plaintiffs shall submit to the examinations.
DONE and ORDERED in Ocala, Florida on May 4, 2015.

Copies furnished to:
Counsel of Record
Unrepresented Parties

-2-