Bell et al v. GEICO General Insurance Company

Filing 76

ORDER denying 65 Motion for limited waiver of privilege. Signed by Magistrate Judge Karla R. Spaulding on 7/19/2011. (Spaulding, Karla)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF FLORIDA
ORLANDO DIVISION
ERSKIN BELL, and PHILLIPA ST.
MARIE-BELL, as Guardians and Parents
of Erskin Bell, II,
Plaintiffs,
-vs-

Case No. 6:09-cv-876-Orl-35KRS

GEICO GENERAL INSURANCE
COMPANY,
Defendant.
______________________________________

ORDER
This cause came on for consideration without oral argument on the following motion filed
herein:
MOTION:

PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION FOR LIMITED WAIVER OF
PRIVILEGE RELATING TO JANUARY 19, 2009 MEMO
DRAFTED BY MICHELE BRUNER (Doc. No. 65)

FILED:
June 15, 2011
_______________________________________________________
THEREON it is ORDERED that the motion is DENIED.
Plaintiffs ask that they be allowed to use a memorandum written by paralegal Michele Bruner
while she was employed at Colling, Gilbert, Wright & Carter without waiving privileges and
protections claimed by that law firm generally. Defendant opposes the motion, arguing that it
requested this memorandum in discovery but it was withheld based on the assertion of attorney-client
privilege and work product. Defendant argues that it would be unfair to allow Plaintiffs “to ‘cherry

pick’ a single document over which they have asserted privilege during discovery, which they
apparently believe is helpful to their case, and disclose that document while continuing to withhold
all other documents over which they have asserted privilege . . . .” Doc. No. 72 at 3.
I ordered Plaintiffs to file a reply to Defendant’s response to address the question of prejudice
to Defendant based on the earlier refusal to disclose the document at issue. The reply was due on or
before July 18, 2011. Doc. No. 75. As of the writing of this Order, a reply has not been filed, and the
time for filing the reply has passed. Therefore, I find that Plaintiffs do not dispute that the document
was previously withheld and they have no good cause to support their request to rely upon that
document at this late stage of the case without disclosing the other documents that were withheld
based on privilege and protection claims.
DONE and ORDERED in Orlando, Florida on July 19, 2011.

Karla R. Spaulding
KARLA R. SPAULDING
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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