Hagag v. Con-Way Transportations Services, Inc.

Filing 9

RULING granting in part 5 Motion to Compel and within 7 days pltf shall sign and return to counsel for the deft the record release authorization forms. Pursuant to Rule 37(a)(5)(A), the pltf is also ordered to pay to the deft, within 14 days, reasonable expenses in the amount of $200.00. In all other respects, the defts motion to compel is denied. Signed by Magistrate Judge Stephen C. Riedlinger on 10/4/2011. (JDL)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF LOUISIANA

NISSR O. HAGAG
CIVIL ACTION
VERSUS
NUMBER 11-346-JJB-SCR
CON-WAY TRANSPORTATION
SERVICES, INC., ET AL
RULING ON MOTION TO COMPEL DISCOVERY
Before the court is a Motion to Compel filed by defendant ConWay Freight, Inc.

Record document number 5.

No opposition has

been filed.
On May 26, 2011 the defendant served the plaintiff with
interrogatories and document production requests. Plaintiff failed
to either object or serve responses.

After attempting to obtain

the plaintiff’s responses without court action, the defendant filed
this motion on July 27, 2011.

However, according to the Status

Report filed August 19, 2011, this motion is “nearly mooted by
receipt of plaintiff’s written responses, minus the signed record
release forms that his responses said were attached but were not in
fact attached.”1

Since the Status Report was filed, the defendant

has not advised the court that the plaintiff has provided the
signed record release authorization forms, and neither has the
defendant

complained

about

the

substance

discovery responses.

1

Record document number 6, ¶ C.

of

the

plaintiff’s

Plaintiff served his discovery responses after this motion was
filed.

Under Rule 37(a)(5)(A), if the discovery responses are

provided after a motion to compel discovery is filed, the court
shall, after affording an opportunity to be heard, require the
party whose conduct necessitated the motion to pay to the moving
party the reasonable expenses incurred in making the motion, unless
the court finds that the motion was filed without the movant first
making a good faith effort to obtain the discovery without court
action,

the

party’s

nondisclosure,

response

or

objection

was

substantially justified, or that other circumstances make an award
of expenses unjust.
Plaintiff’s failure to timely provide his discovery responses
or response to this motion demonstrates that the defendant is
entitled to reasonable expenses under this rule.2

Defendant did

not submit anything to support an award of a particular amount of
expenses

and

attorney’s

fees.

A

review

of

the

motion

and

memorandum supports the conclusion that the amount of $200.00 is
reasonable.
Accordingly, the Motion to Compel filed by defendant Con-Way
Freight, Inc. is granted, in part. Within seven days the plaintiff
shall sign and return to counsel for the defendant the record
release authorization forms served with the defendant’s discovery

2

These same facts show that the plaintiff’s actions are not
substantially justified and that there are no circumstances which
would make an award of expenses unjust.
2

requests.

Pursuant to Rule 37(a)(5)(A), the plaintiff is also

ordered to pay to the defendant, within 14 days, reasonable
expenses in the amount of $200.00.

In all other respects, the

defendant’s Motion to Compel is denied.
Baton Rouge, Louisiana, October 4, 2011.

STEPHEN C. RIEDLINGER
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

3