Eagle Rock Contracting LLC et al v. National Security Technologies, LLC
Filing
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ORDER. IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Defendant's 67 Motion to Strike is GRANTED in part and DENIED in part. Specifically, the Court declines to strike Plaintiff's untimely Answer 64 . IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Defendant's Motio n for Summary Judgment regarding Plaintiffs First and Second Causes of Action 65 , Motion for Summary Judgment regarding Plaintiff's First and Second Causes of Action 81 , and Motion for Summary Judgment regarding Defendant's Counterclaims 82 are DENIED without prejudice. (See Order for additional details.) Signed by Chief Judge Gloria M. Navarro on 4/14/16. (Copies have been distributed pursuant to the NEF - PS)
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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DISTRICT OF NEVADA
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EAGLE ROCK CONTRACTING, LLC,
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Plaintiff,
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vs.
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NATIONAL SECURITY TECHNOLOGIES, )
LLC,
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Defendant.
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Case No.: 2:14-cv-01278-GMN-NJK
ORDER
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Before the Court is a Motion for Summary Judgment regarding Plaintiff’s First and
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Second Causes of Action (ECF No. 65), a Motion for Summary Judgment regarding Plaintiff’s
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First and Second Causes of Action (ECF No. 81), and a Motion for Summary Judgment
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regarding Defendant’s Counterclaims (ECF No. 82) filed by Defendant National Security
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Technologies, LLC (“Defendant”). Also pending before the Court is a Motion to Strike (ECF
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No. 67) filed by Defendant.
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I.
MOTIONS TO STRIKE
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A. Legal Standard
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The Court may strike “from a pleading an insufficient defense or any redundant,
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immaterial, impertinent, or scandalous matter.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(f). “[T]he function of a Rule
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12(f) motion to strike is to avoid the expenditure of time and money that must arise from
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litigating spurious issues by dispensing with those issues prior to trial….” Sidney–Vinstein v.
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A.H. Robins Co., 697 F.2d 880, 885 (9th Cir. 1983). The decision to grant or deny a motion to
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strike is vested in the trial judge’s sound discretion. Cal. Dept. of Toxic Substances Control v.
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Alco Pacific, Inc., 217 F. Supp. 2d 1028, 1033 (C.D. Cal. 2002). However, federal courts
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disfavor motions under Rule 12(f) and generally view them as a drastic remedy. See, e.g.,
Freeman v. ABC Legal Servs., Inc., 877 F. Supp. 2d 919, 923 (N.D. Cal. 2012); Mag
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Instrument, Inc. v. JS Products Inc., 595 F. Supp. 2d 1102, 1006 (C.D. Cal. 2008); Sorenson v.
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Countrywide Home Loans, Inc., 2010 WL 308794, at *2 (E.D. Cal. Jan. 12, 2010). “If the court
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is in doubt as to whether challenged matter may raise an issue of fact or law, the motion to
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strike should be denied, leaving an assessment of the sufficiency of the allegations for
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adjudication on the merits.” Sliger v. Prospect Mortg., LLC, 789 F. Supp. 2d 1212, 1216 (E.D.
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Cal. 2011) (citing Whittlestone, Inc. v. HandiCraft Co., 618 F.3d 970, 973 (9th Cir. 2010)).
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B. Discussion
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Defendant moves to strike Plaintiff’s Answer to the Counterclaims as untimely. (Mot.
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Strike 2:5, ECF No. 67). Alternatively, Defendant argues that, if the Court denies its Motion to
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Strike, it should permit Defendant to further depose Plaintiff’s managing members, Ray Carson
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and Vicci Carson, out of time on the subject of Plaintiff’s Answer. (Id. 2:6–8).
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Pursuant to Rule 12(a)(1)(B), Plaintiff should have filed an answer to Defendant’s
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Counterclaims within 21 days after being served with the pleading containing the
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Counterclaims. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(a)(1)(B). Here, Plaintiff filed its Answer more than
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seven months after Defendant had filed and served its Answer containing the Counterclaims.
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Accordingly, Plaintiff’s Answer is clearly untimely. However, federal courts in this and other
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circuits generally hold that the untimeliness of an answer, even if extreme like in the present
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case, is not, by itself, a sufficient reason for granting a motion to strike. See McCabe v. Arave,
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827 F.2d 634, 63940 (9th Cir. 1987) (concluding that a district judge did not abuse his
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discretion by denying the plaintiffs’ request that the defendants’ defenses be stricken from an
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answer that plaintiffs received on the day of trial); AT& T Corp. v. Dataway Inc., 577 F. Supp.
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2d 1099, 1103 (N.D. Cal. 2008) (declining to strike an answer that was filed 170 days after the
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filing deadline where counsel admitted to his oversight, the plaintiff had been “vigorously
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defending and prosecuting” the action, and the moving party had not previously raised
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plaintiff’s failure to answer); Beal v. U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, 2012 WL 3113181, at *2 (E.D.
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Wash. Jul. 31, 2012) (declining to strike an answer, which was filed 14 months late, in light of
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“a judicial preference for deciding matters on their merits when possible”); Estate of Hirata v.
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Ida, 2011 WL 3290409, at *3 (D. Haw. June 14, 2011) (declining to strike an answer that was
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more than nine months late where defendants “demonstrated an intent to defend the case on the
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merits”). Taking into consideration that Plaintiff has been actively prosecuting this action and
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in light of a strong judicial preference for resoling cases on their merits, the Court finds that the
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untimeliness of Plaintiff’s answer does not warrant striking Plaintiff’s pleading.
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However, the Court does find that, in light of the untimeliness of Plaintiff’s Answer,
Defendant should be allowed to further depose Plaintiff’s managing members, Ray Carson and
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Vicci Carson, out of time on the subject of Plaintiff’s Answer and the affirmative defenses
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therein. Accordingly, the Court will reopen discovery for an additional thirty (30) days from
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the date of this Order for this limited purpose.
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II.
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MOTIONS FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT
Defendant has filed three separate motions for summary judgment when Defendant
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should have filed a single motion for summary judgment to address all the raised arguments.
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See Sherwin v. Infinity Auto Ins. Co., No. 2:11-CV-00043-MMD, 2012 WL 5378150, at *1 (D.
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Nev. Oct. 30, 2012). Local Rule 7-4 provides, “[P]oints and authorities in support of, or in
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response to, motions shall be limited to thirty (30) pages including the motion but excluding
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exhibits.” D. Nev. R. 7-4. Defendant’s attempt to circumvent Local Rule 7–4’s page limit is
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transparent because the three partial motions total 73 pages evidencing Defendant’s disregard
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for Rule 7–4’s page limit. Thus, the Court denies the Motions without prejudice for failure to
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comply with Local Rule 7–4. The Court strongly cautions the parties that the Court will not
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consider motions that exceed Local Rule 7–4’s page limit.
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Defendant may refile a single motion for summary judgment to address all the raised
issues that complies with Local Rule 7–4 within sixty (60) days of the date of this Order.
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III.
CONCLUSION
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Defendant’s Motion to Strike is GRANTED in part
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and DENIED in part. Specifically, the Court declines to strike Plaintiff’s untimely Answer
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(ECF No. 64). However, the Court reopens discovery for an additional thirty (30) days from
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the date of this Order for the limited purpose of allowing Defendant to further depose Plaintiff’s
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managing members, Ray Carson and Vicci Carson, on the subject of Plaintiff’s Answer (ECF
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No. 64) and the affirmative defenses therein.
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IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment
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regarding Plaintiff’s First and Second Causes of Action (ECF No. 65), Motion for Summary
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Judgment regarding Plaintiff’s First and Second Causes of Action (ECF No. 81), and Motion
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for Summary Judgment regarding Defendant’s Counterclaims (ECF No. 82) are DENIED
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without prejudice. Accordingly, Defendant may refile a single motion for summary judgment
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to address all the raised issues that complies with Local Rule 7–4 within sixty (60) days of the
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date of this Order.
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DATED this _____ day of April, 2016.
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___________________________________
Gloria M. Navarro, Chief Judge
United States District Judge
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