Cruz et al v. Wabash National Corporation
Filing
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ORDER Denying 17 Defendant's Motion to Stay Discovery and Related Deadlines. Signed by Magistrate Judge Carl W. Hoffman on 12/26/2013. (Copies have been distributed pursuant to the NEF - AC)
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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DISTRICT OF NEVADA
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JESSE CRUZ, et al.,
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Plaintiffs,
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vs.
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WABASH NATIONAL CORPORATION,
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Defendant.
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__________________________________________)
Case No. 2:12-cv-01627-JAD-CWH
ORDER
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This matter is before the Court on Defendant Wabash National Corporation’s Motion to
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Stay Discovery and Related Deadlines (#17), filed on November 27, 2013. The Court also
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considered Plaintiff’s Response (#19), filed on December 11, 2013, and Defendant’s Reply (#20),
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filed on December 23, 2013. Defendant seeks a stay of discovery until the Motion to Dismiss (#7)
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is decided. It argues that the Motion to Dismiss (#7) is potentially dispositive without additional
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discovery and it cannot conduct discovery until an order is issued.
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DISCUSSION
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Courts have broad discretionary power to control discovery including the decision to allow
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or deny discovery. See e.g., Little v. City of Seattle, 863 F.2d 681, 685 (9th Cir. 1988). An overly
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lenient standard for granting a motion to stay would result in unnecessary delay in many cases.
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That discovery may involve inconvenience and expense is not sufficient to support a stay of
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discovery. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. v. Tracinda Corp., 175 F.R.D. 554, 556 (D. Nev.
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1997).1 Rather, a stay of discovery should only be ordered if the court is convinced that a plaintiff
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will be unable to state a claim for relief. See Tradebay, LLC v. eBay, Inc., 278 F.R.D. 597, 603 (D.
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Nev. 2011); see also Wood v. McEwen, 644 F.2d 797, 801 (9th Cir. 1981) (per curiam).
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As noted in Tradebay, “[t]he fact that a non-frivolous motion is pending is simply not enough to warrant a blanket
stay of all discovery.” 278 F.R.D. at 603.
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Ultimately, the party seeking the stay “carries the heavy burden of making a ‘strong showing’ why
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discovery should be denied.” Id. (citing Blankenship v. Hearst Corp., 519 F.2d 418, 429 (9th
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Cir.1975)).
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The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure do not provide for automatic or blanket stays of
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discovery when a potentially dispositive motion is pending. Skellercup Indus. Ltd. V. City of L.A.,
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163 F.R.D. 598 600-01 (C.D. Cal 1995) (finding that a stay of discovery is directly at odds with the
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need for expeditious resolution of litigation and stating that if the Federal Rules contemplated a
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motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6) would stay discovery, then they would contain such a
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provision). Ordinarily a pending dispositive motion is not “a situation that in and of itself would
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warrant a stay of discovery.” See Turner, 175 F.R.D. at 555-56 (quoting Twin City Fire Ins. v.
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Employers Insurance of Wausau, 124 F.R.D. 652, 653 (D.Nev. 1989)). To establish good cause for
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a stay, the moving party must show more than an apparently meritorious Rule 12(b)(6) motion. Id.
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Common examples of situations in which good cause has been found are when jurisdiction, venue,
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or immunity are preliminary issues. Id.
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Further, the Ninth Circuit has held that under certain circumstances, a district court abuses
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its discretion if it prevents a party from conducting discovery relevant to a potentially dispositive
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motion. See, e.g., Alaska Cargo Transport, Inc. v. Alaska R.R., Corp., 5 F.3d 378, 383 (9th Cir.
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1993) (stating the district court would have abused its discretion in staying discovery if the
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discovery was relevant to whether or not the court had subject matter jurisdiction); Jarvis v. Regan,
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833 F.2d 149, 155 (9th Cir. 1987) (holding district court did not abuse its discretion in denying
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discovery when the complaint did not raise factual issues requiring discovery to resolve); Kamm v.
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Cal. City Dev. Co., 509 F.2d 205, 210 (9th Cir. 1975) (holding the propriety of a class action
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cannot be determined in some cases without discovery, and to deny discovery in such cases is an
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abuse of discretion); Doninger v. Pac. Nw. Bell, Inc., 564 F.2d 1304, 1313 (9th Cir. 1977) (stating
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that the better and more advisable practice is for the district court to allow litigants an opportunity
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to present evidence concerning whether a class action is maintainable, and such an opportunity
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requires “enough discovery to obtain the material”).
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On the other hand, the purpose of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6) is to enable a
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defendant to challenge the legal sufficiency of a complaint without subjecting it to discovery.
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Rutman Wine Co. v. E & J Gallo Winery, 829 F.2d 729, 738 (9th Cir. 1987). The Ninth Circuit has
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held that discovery at the pleading stage is only appropriate where factual issues are raised by a
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Rule 12(b) motion and a pending Rule 12(b) motion to dismiss is sufficient cause for granting a
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protective order. Wagh v. Metris Direct, Inc., 363 F.3d 821, 829 (9th Cir. 2003), overruled on
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other grounds, Odom v. Microsoft Corp., 486 F.3d 541, 551 (9th Cir.2007) (en banc). Under
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Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c), the court may limit the scope of disclosures or discovery on
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certain matters and prevent certain matters from being inquired into upon a showing of good cause
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or where “justice requires to protect a party or person from annoyance, embarrassment, oppression,
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or undue burden or expense.” Id. However, a party seeking a protective order must show a
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particular and specific need for the protective order, and broad or conclusory statements concerning
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the need for protection are insufficient. Gray v. First Winthrop Corp., 133 F.R.D. 39, 40 (N.D.
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Cal. 1990).
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In evaluating the propriety of an order staying or limiting discovery while a dispositive
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motion is pending, this Court considers the goal of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 1, which
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provides that the Rules shall “be construed and administered to secure the just, speedy, and
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inexpensive determination of every action.” Id. Discovery is expensive. This Court is persuaded
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that the standard enunciated by Judges Reed and Hunt in Twin City, 124 F.R.D. 652, and Turner,
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175 F.R.D. 554, should apply in evaluating whether a stay of discovery is appropriate while a
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dispositive motion is pending. With Rule 1 as its prime directive, this court must decide whether it
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is more just to speed the parties along in discovery while a dispositive motion is pending or to delay
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discovery to accomplish the inexpensive determination of the case.
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The Court finds that the Defendant has not made the strong showing necessary to support
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the requested stay. Defendant contend that Plaintiffs’ three claims, negligence, strict product
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liability, and warranty of implied fitness, should be dismissed as a matter of law. See Def.’s Mot.
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#7. In doing so, Defendants argue that Plaintiffs failed to state the duty of care and events
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constituting breach for the negligence claim, the alleged defect and type for the strict product
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liability claim, and horizontal privity for the warranty of implied fitness claim. Consequently,
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Defendant asserts that staying discovery is warranted because the Motion to Dismiss is potentially
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dispositive of the entire action. In contrast, Plaintiff contends that the mere filing of a motion to
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dismiss, without more to indicate that Plaintiff is unable to state a claim, is insufficient to warrant a
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stay of discovery. The Court agrees that Defendant has not provided sufficient proof that resolution
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of the Motion to Dismiss (#7) would be dispositive of the entire action. The Court’s preliminary
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peek at the Motion to Dismiss reveals that it does not raise preliminary issues of jurisdiction,
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venue, and immunity. Additionally, although it may be granted with respect to the claim for
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warranty of implied fitness, it is unlikely to resolve the entire action because Plaintiffs may be
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given leave to amend their complaint and the Court is not convinced that Plaintiffs are unable to
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state a claim for relief.
Moreover, the Court has considered Rule 1's directive to secure the speedy and inexpensive
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determination of this action. Defendant is correct that the Motion to Dismiss (#7) is fully briefed
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and Plaintiffs do not allege that they require discovery to oppose the motion. However, the Court
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finds that a stay of all discovery pending the resolution of the motion would be counter to Rule 1's
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goal of a speedy resolution of cases. Finally, the Court notes that the Defendant did not meet with
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Plaintiffs prior to filing the motion to stay in accordance with Local Rule 26-7. Without
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information from a consultation, the Court lacks the ability to assess the breadth of the discovery
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and the prejudice, if any, that Defendant will suffer in conducting discovery. See Brooks v. Macy’s,
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Inc., 2010 WL 5297756, *2 (S.D.N.Y. 2010). In addition, Defendant indicates that discovery is
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continuing in the two related cases and staying discovery in this case would prevent duplication and
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costs. The Court is not persuaded that conducting discovery in this case would result in duplication
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or unnecessary expense and encourages the parties to meet and confer to prevent such an
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occurrence. Accordingly, the Court finds that stay of discovery until the Motion to Dismiss (#7) is
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resolved is not warranted at this time.
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Based on the foregoing and good cause appearing therefore,
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IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Defendant Wabash National Corporation’s Motion to
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Stay Discovery and Related Deadlines (#17) is denied.
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DATED this 26th day of December, 2013.
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_____________________________________
C.W. Hoffman, Jr.
United States Magistrate Judge
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