Meehan v. Holland America Line Inc et al

Filing 20

ORDER granting 19 Stipulated Motion to continue the expert witness disclosure deadline; Expert Witness Disclosure/Reports under FRCP 26(a)(2) due by 9/13/2017. Signed by Judge James L. Robart. (PM)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON
AT SEATTLE

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MARIE A. MEEHAN,
Plaintiff,

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v.

CASE NO. C15-1520JLR
ORDER GRANTING
STIPULATED MOTION

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HOLLAND AMERICA LINE, INC.,
et al.,

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Defendants.

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Before the court is the parties’ stipulated motion to continue the expert witness
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disclosure deadline from July 26, 2017, to September 13, 2017. (Stip. (Dkt. # 19).) The
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court GRANTS the motion and extends the expert disclosure deadline to September 13,
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2017. The court, however, warns the parties that the court is disinclined to grant any
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further adjustment in the case schedule based on the facts submitted in the parties’
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stipulated motion. Specifically, the court is disinclined to grant any extension in the
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September 25, 2017, discovery cutoff or any of the subsequent case schedule deadlines.
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ORDER - 1

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(See Sched. Ord. (Dkt. # 18) at 1.) Thus, the parties must complete whatever expert

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witness discovery they intend to take between September 13 and September 25, 2017.

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Further, the parties have now extended expert witness disclosures beyond the August 25,

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2017, deadline for motions related to discovery. (See id.) Because the parties stipulate to

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this change, they will bear any consequences associated with this alteration in the case

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schedule.

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The court issues scheduling orders setting trial and related dates to provide a

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reasonable schedule for the resolution of disputes. First, the court generally sets the

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discovery cutoff 30 days prior to the deadline for filing dispositive motions in order to

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ensure that the court has before it a complete record when it considers a motion that could

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potentially dispose of the case. Second, the schedule generally provides 90 days between

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the deadline for filing dispositive motions and the trial date. This 90-day period takes

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into account: (a) an approximate 30-day lag between the date a party files a dispositive

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motion and the date that motion becomes ripe for the court’s consideration, see Local

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Rules W.D. Wash. LCR 7(d)(3); and (b) an additional 30 days during which the court

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endeavors to rule on the motion, id. at LCR 7(b)(5). Anything short of a 90-day period

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leaves inadequate time for the parties to consider the court’s ruling and plan for trial or

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alternate resolution of the case. For the foregoing reasons, the court is disinclined to alter

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any of these deadlines. To obtain any adjustment of these deadlines, the parties generally

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must request a change in the trial date and show good cause for their request. The parties

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should be aware that the court is presently setting trial dates in September 2018. Absent

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ORDER - 2

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unusual circumstances, the court schedules new trial dates at the end of the court’s

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calendar.

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Dated this 30th day of May, 2017.

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A

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JAMES L. ROBART
United States District Judge

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ORDER - 3