Florer v. Ford Motor Service Company Inc., et al.

Filing 179

MEMORANDUM DECISION & ORDER - IT IS ORDERED that Plaintiff's Objection (Dkt. 178 ) to the United States Magistrate Judge's Order is OVERRULED. Plaintiff is ordered to appear in person for his December 14, 2023 deposition.Signed by Judge B Lynn Winmill. (caused to be mailed to non Registered Participants at the addresses listed on the Notice of Electronic Filing (NEF) by (ac)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF IDAHO
D. SCOTT FLORER,
Case No. 1:22-cv-00449-BLW-DKG
Plaintiff,
MEMORANDUM DECISION &
ORDER

v.
FORD MOTOR COMPANY, INC.;
LITHIA FORD OF BOISE, INC.;
RHETT SHEEDER; RICH STUART;
ANGELO SANCHEZ; TRAVIS STEAR;
and LISA CRABTREE,
Defendants.

INTRODUCTION
This matter is before the Court on Plaintiff D. Scott Florer’s objections to a
discovery order issued by a United States Magistrate Judge Debora K. Grasham. See Dkt.
178. For the reasons explained below, the Court will overrule Plaintiff’s objection.
STANDARD OF REVIEW
Under 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1)(A), a magistrate judge may hear and determine any
pretrial matter before the court, with certain exceptions not relevant here. This Court may
reconsider a magistrate judge’s ruling on such a matter if that ruling is “clearly erroneous
or contrary to law.” 18 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1)(A).
DISCUSSION
The facts relevant to this motion are set forth in the Magistrate Judge’s Order, see
Dkt. 177, and will not be repeated here. Briefly, however, Plaintiff D. Scott Florer’s
MEMORANDUM DECISION & ORDER - 1

deposition is scheduled for tomorrow, December 14, 2023. At the eleventh hour, Mr.
Florer filed a motion to have the deposition conducted remotely, on ground that he had
just moved to Utah. See Dkt. 173, 174. The Magistrate Judge acted well within the law in
determining that the deposition should be conducted in person, in the District of Idaho.
And although plaintiff complains that he had not yet filed a reply in support of his
motion, the Magistrate Judge reasonably determined to go ahead and issue a ruling, and
to expedite the time for filing objections, given that the deposition was scheduled to take
place within the next 24 hours. This Court is also issuing a quick ruling in an effort to
keep this litigation on track. In sum, none of Mr. Florer’s objections show that the
Magistrate Judge issued an order that is clearly erroneous or contrary to law.
Accordingly, the Court will overrule the objections.
ORDER
IT IS ORDERED that Plaintiff’s Objection (Dkt. 178) to the United States
Magistrate Judge’s Order is OVERRULED. Plaintiff is ordered to appear in person for
his December 14, 2023 deposition.
DATED: December 13, 2023
_________________________
B. Lynn Winmill
U.S. District Court Judge

MEMORANDUM DECISION & ORDER - 2