Thomas v. Seminole Electric Cooperative Inc.

Filing 23

ORDER granting in part and denying in part 21 Defendant's Motion to Compel Third Party Deposition. The Clerk is directed to mail a copy of this Order to the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay at the following address: 1 Crisis Center Plaza, Tampa, Florida 33613. Signed by Magistrate Judge Julie S. Sneed on 12/12/2017. (LBL)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF FLORIDA
TAMPA DIVISION
JOZETTE THOMAS,
Plaintiff,
v.

Case No: 8:16-cv-3404-T-35JSS

SEMINOLE ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE
INC.,
Defendant.
___________________________________/
ORDER
THIS MATTER is before the Court on Defendant’s Motion to Compel Third Party
Deposition (“Motion”) (Dkt. 21), which Plaintiff does not oppose (Dkt. 22). For the reasons that
follow, the Motion is granted in part and denied in part.
Previously, Plaintiff moved to quash a subpoena duces tecum served on her therapist, Debra
Lubronovich of the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay (“Crisis Center”). (Dkt. 16.) The undersigned
denied Plaintiff’s request but modified the scope of the subpoena to documents relating to
treatment of Plaintiff’s depression from 2011 to the present. (Dkt. 18.) In the Motion, Defendant
explains that while the Crisis Center has provided Defendant with Plaintiff’s medical records,
“[m]any of the records are illegible and present further questions regarding their contents.” (Dkt.
21 ¶¶ 2–3.) As a result, Defendant issued a Subpoena to Testify at Deposition to the corporate
representative of the Crisis Center, with the deposition to take place on December 20, 2017. (Dkt.
21-1.) A representative of the Crisis Center, however, informed Defendant that it refused to appear
for the deposition absent a court order. (Dkt. 21 ¶ 5.) Therefore, in the Motion, Defendant seeks
an order compelling the appearance of the corporate representative at the scheduled deposition.
(Dkt. 21 at 2.) Plaintiff does not oppose the Motion. (Dkt. 22.)

“A party may, by oral questions, depose any person, including a party, without leave of
court,” except in certain situations not applicable here. Fed. R. Civ. P. 30(a)(1). As explained
above, the Court has already determined that information relating to the treatment of Plaintiff’s
depression from 2011 to the present is relevant to Plaintiff’s claims and that Plaintiff has waived
her privilege in any confidential communications regarding her depression that she had with her
treatment providers. (Dkt. 18.) Further, Plaintiff does not oppose the deposition of the Crisis
Center’s corporate representative. (Dkt. 22.) Because Defendant is entitled to depose any person,
Fed. R. Civ. P. 30(a)(1), and the testimony sought is relevant to Plaintiff’s claims and not protected
by the psychotherapist-patient privilege, Defendant’s request to compel the attendance of the Crisis
Center’s corporate representative at the scheduled deposition is granted. However, the first topic
to be addressed at the deposition (Dkt. 21-1, Attachment “A,” Topic 1), is limited to Plaintiff’s
treatment at the Crisis Center for depression from 2011 to the present.
Accordingly, Defendant’s Motion to Compel Third Party Deposition (Dkt. 21) is
GRANTED in part and DENIED in part as provided herein. The Clerk is directed to mail a copy
of this Order to the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay at the following address: 1 Crisis Center Plaza,
Tampa, Florida 33613.
DONE and ORDERED in Tampa, Florida, on December 12, 2017.

Copies furnished to:
Counsel of Record
Crisis Center of Tampa Bay
1 Crisis Center Plaza
Tampa, Florida 33613
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