Arnold v. Ascension Health, Inc. et al

Filing 50

ORDER: Telephone Conference set for 7/30/2014 at 3:00 PM before Magistrate Judge Juliet E. Griffin, to be initiated by counsel for the defendant. The Court requires that the plaintiff and a representative of the defendant(s) shall be present with FULL SETTLEMENT AUTHORITY. Signed by Magistrate Judge Juliet E. Griffin on 7/8/2014. (DOCKET TEXT SUMMARY ONLY-ATTORNEYS MUST OPEN THE PDF AND READ THE ORDER.)(ds)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF TENNESSEE
COLUMBIA DIVISION

WILLA CHARLENE ARNOLD
v.
SAINT THOMAS HEALTH f/n/a SAINT
THOMAS HEALTH SERVICES;
SAINT THOMAS HICKMAN HOSPITAL,
f/n/a HICKMAN COMMUNITY HEALTHCARE
SERVICES, INC. a/k/a HICKMAN
COMMUNITY HOSPITAL; SAINT THOMAS
HOME HEALTH f/k/a HICKMAN
COMMUNITY HOME CARE, INC.

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NO. 1:14-0008

ORDER
On June 30, 2014, Chief Judge Haynes referred this case and three other cases similarly styled,
Sanders v. St. Thomas Health, et al 1:14-0007; McCaleb v. St. Thomas Health, et al, 1:14-0009; and
Kelso v. St. Thomas Health, et al, 1:14-0010, to the undersigned to conduct a settlement conference
before December 31, 2014, upon agreed order of referral by the parties. Docket Entry No. 49.
The Court shall convene a conference call on WEDNESDAY, JULY 30, 2014, at 3:00 p.m.,
to be initiated by counsel for the defendant. During this conference call the attorneys are directed to
be fully prepared to discuss the following:
1.

What efforts have been made so far by counsel to settle this case on their own,
including when and what demands have been made by the plaintiff, and what offer(s)
have been made by the defendants, and the potential for settlement.

2.

Counsel shall be prepared to advise the Court on who will attend the settlement
conference.

The Court requires that the plaintiff and a representative of the

defendant(s) shall be present with FULL SETTLEMENT AUTHORITY. The

parties are advised that unless otherwise specifically ordered, failure to be present
with full settlement authority could result in imposition of sanctions pursuant to
Rule 16(f) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. For the purposes of this case, full
settlement authority of the defendant(s) is deemed to be up to the last demand made
by the plaintiff. Full settlement authority also means that the plaintiff and the
representative of the defendant(s) present at the settlement conference do not need
authority from any other individual to enter into any settlement agreement. The
plaintiff and the representative of the defendant(s) present at the settlement conference
shall have total independent authority to enter into any settlement agreement.
3.

Counsel shall confirm that the settlement conferences in the other three cases,
1:14-0007, 1:14-0009, and 1:14-0010 should be held together with this case. Counsel
shall also be prepared to discuss how long they think the settlement conference will
last.

4.

Counsel are ORDERED to have their calendars and the calendars of EVERY
PERSON who will participate in the settlement conference available so that the Court
can set a firm date for the settlement conference/conferences. In particular, counsel
need to know what dates ARE NOT available for everyone to attend, in person, during
the months of October and December 2014.

It is so ORDERED.

JULIET GRIFFIN
United States Magistrate Judge