Pogue v. The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company

Filing 79

MEMORANDUM OPINION signed by Senior Judge Charles R. Simpson, III on 6/15/2016. Court will overrule Plaintiff's objections to the Magistrate Judge's Opinion and Order 68 . The Court will enter a separate order in accordance with this Opinion.cc: Counsel (RLK)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF KENTUCKY
AT LOUISVILLE
PLAINTIFF

JAMES H. POGUE

v.

CIVIL ACTION NO. 3:14-cv-00598-CRS

NORTHWESTERN MUTUAL LIFE
INSURANCE COMPANY
MEMORANDUM OPINION

DEFENDANT

Defendant Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company (“Northwestern Mutual”)
moved for a protective order that would require Plaintiff James. H. Pogue to depose
Northwestern Mutual’s corporate designees at its principal place of business in Milwaukee,
Wisconsin. Pogue had sought, under Fed. R. Civ. P. 30(b)(6), to depose these designees in
Louisville, Kentucky. The magistrate judge granted Northwestern Mutual’s protective order.
Pogue now objects to that order.
District courts within this circuit have held that “in federal litigation, in the absence of
special circumstances, a party seeking discovery must go where the desired witnesses are
normally located.” Farquhar v. Sheldon, 116 F.R.D. 70, 72 (E.D. Mich.) (quoting Wright and
Miller, Federal Practice and Procedure: Civil, Sec. 2112); see also, Ryan v. Ky. Dept. of Corr. W.
Reg’l Training Ctr., Civil Action No. 3:14-CV-00598-CRS-CHL (W.D. Ky. Mar. 23, 2016).
“The general rule is that the deposition of a corporation by its agents and officers should be taken

at the corporation’s principal place of business.” Steppe v. Cleverdon, Civil Action No. 06–CV00144–JMH (E.D. Ky. July 25, 2007) (citing Chris-Craft Indus. Prods., Inc. v. Kuraray Co.,
Ltd., 184 F.R.D. 605, 607 (N.D. Ill. 1999)).

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Under Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(c)(1), this Court may enter a protective order upon a showing of
good cause to avoid “annoyance, embarrassment, oppression, or undue burden or expense.”
There is a presumption of good cause for a protective order when a deposition notice is for a
location other than the desired witness’ residence. See Culver v. Wilson, Civil Action No. 3:14–
CV–00660–CRS–CHL (W.D. Ky. Apr. 16, 2015). Pogue has not rebutted this presumption.
As Northwestern Mutual has shown good cause for a protective order and Pogue has
failed to rebut this presumption, the Court will overrule Pogue’s objections to the magistrate
judge’s opinion and order.
The Court will enter a separate order in accordance with this opinion.
SO ORDERED.

June 15, 2016

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