Sweeny v. Nationstar Mortgage, LLC

Filing 20

ORDER granting 19 Stipulated Motion for Extension of Time; Expert Witness Disclosure/Reports under FRCP 26(a)(2) extended to 7/5/2017, signed by Judge Robert S. Lasnik.(RS)

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Judge Robert S. Lasnik
Ann T. Marshall, WSBA No. 23533
Barbara L. Bollero, WSBA No. 28906
ANGLIN FLEWELLING RASMUSSEN
CAMPBELL & TRYTTEN, LLP
701 Pike Street, Suite 1560
Seattle, WA 98101
Telephone: [phone], ext. 3204
Facsimile: 206-492-2319
[e-mail]
Attorneys for Defendant
Nationstar Mortgage LLC

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON

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JULI ANN SWEENY,

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NO. 2:16-cv-01424-RSL

Plaintiff,
v.
NATIONSTAR MORTGAGE, LLC, a
Delaware limited liability company,

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Defendant.

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STIPULATION OF PARTIES AND
ORDER THEREON FURTHER
EXTENDING EXPERT WITNESS
REPORT DATE
Noting Date: June 7, 2017

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I.

RELIEF REQUESTED

Plaintiff Juli Ann Sweeny and Defendant Nationstar Mortgage LLC (“Nationstar”)
request the Court grant a further extension of time of 28 days for them to exchange reports of

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104034/000047/01761628-1

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STIPULATION OF PARTIES AND
ORDER THEREON FURTHER
EXTENDING EXPERT WITNESS
REPORT DATE - 1

ANGLIN FLEWELLING RASMUSSEN
CAMPBELL & TRYTTEN LLP
701 Pike Street, Suite 1560
Seattle, WA 98101
[phone] | Fax [phone]

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expert witnesses, pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)(2). A previous 28 day extension was

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granted from May 10, 2017, to June 7, 2017. [Dkt. 18.]

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Ms. Sweeny and Nationstar have been continuously engaged in settlement

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negotiations concerning the accounting and terms of her four Nationstar-serviced loans, as set

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forth in her approved Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Plan of Reorganization, and amendments

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thereto. To that end, the parties request this extension to determine whether the litigation may

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be resolved without the expenditure of unnecessary time and incurring unnecessary additional

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fees not related to settlement efforts and potential dismissal of the litigation. The parties

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request the deadline for the exchange of expert reports be extended from June 7, 2017, to July

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5, 2017.
II.

FACTUAL BACKGROUND AND PROCEDURAL POSTURE

Plaintiff filed this action on August 4, 2016, in King County Superior Court.

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Nationstar removed the case to this Court on September 7, 2016.

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Nationstar was served with the Summons, Ms. Sweeny and Nationstar have engaged in

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settlement discussions concerning the accounting and terms of her four Nationstar-serviced

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loans, as set forth in her approved Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Plan of Reorganization and

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amendments thereto.

Since shortly after

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Since the last expert witness extension was granted on May 11, 2017 [Dkt. 18], Ms.

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Sweeny formulated a counter-demand, several communications clarifying its terms were

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exchanged, and Nationstar has requested clarification of additional terms to complete its

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determination of a response to the most recent counter-demand. The parties believe it will be

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mutually beneficial to allow additional time to explore settlement, and determine whether

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104034/000047/01761628-1

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STIPULATION OF PARTIES AND
ORDER THEREON FURTHER
EXTENDING EXPERT WITNESS
REPORT DATE - 2

ANGLIN FLEWELLING RASMUSSEN
CAMPBELL & TRYTTEN LLP
701 Pike Street, Suite 1560
Seattle, WA 98101
[phone] | Fax [phone]

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further litigation will be required. To that end, they request an extension of time of four

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weeks, from extended from June 7, 2017, to July 5, 2017, to disclose expert witness reports.

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III.

ARGUMENT

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LCR 7(j) provides in relevant part:

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A motion for relief from a deadline should, whenever possible, be filed
sufficiently in advance of the deadline to allow the court to rule on the motion
prior to the deadline…. If a true, unforeseen emergency exists that prevents a
party from meeting a deadline, and the emergency arose too late to file a
motion for relief from the deadline, the party should contact the adverse party,
meet and confer regarding an extension, and file a stipulation and proposed
order with the court….

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Here, because this is a stipulated motion under LCR 10(g), it is noted as a same-day

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motion under LCR (d)(1). The parties have met and conferred and agreed that a four week

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extension should provide enough time for the parties to determine if they are able to achieve

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settlement and enter a settlement agreement, including a dismissal with prejudice, or else

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provide expert witness reports to each other. The Court granted two previous extensions to

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the parties to file their Joint Status Report. This is the parties’ second request for additional

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time concerning the expert witness report deadline, and this request is made in good faith

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without purpose of delay.

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WHEREFORE, the Parties respectfully request an extension of time of four weeks,
from extended from June 7, 2017, to July 5, 2017, to disclose expert witness reports.
Dated this 7th day of June, 2017.

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/s/ Craig S. Sternberg
Craig S. Sternberg, WSBA No. 00521
Sternberg Thomson Okrent & Scher, PLLC
520 Pike St., Suite 2250

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104034/000047/01761628-1

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STIPULATION OF PARTIES AND
ORDER THEREON FURTHER
EXTENDING EXPERT WITNESS
REPORT DATE - 3

ANGLIN FLEWELLING RASMUSSEN
CAMPBELL & TRYTTEN LLP
701 Pike Street, Suite 1560
Seattle, WA 98101
[phone] | Fax [phone]

Seattle, WA 98101-4013
Telephone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
Attorneys for Plaintiff

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Dated this 7th day of June, 2017.

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/s/ Barbara L. Bollero
Ann T. Marshall, WSBA No. 23533
Barbara L. Bollero, WSBA No. 28906
ANGLIN FLEWELLING RASMUSSEN
CAMPBELL & TRYTTEN LLP
701 Pike Street, Suite 1560
Seattle, WA 98101
Telephone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
E-Mail: [e-mail]
Attorneys for Defendant Nationstar Mortgage LLC

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PURSUANT TO STIPULATION, IT IS SO ORDERED.

Dated this 8th day of June, 2017.

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A

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JUDGE ROBERT S. LASNIK
U.S. District Court Judge

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104034/000047/01761628-1

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STIPULATION OF PARTIES AND
ORDER THEREON FURTHER
EXTENDING EXPERT WITNESS
REPORT DATE - 4

ANGLIN FLEWELLING RASMUSSEN
CAMPBELL & TRYTTEN LLP
701 Pike Street, Suite 1560
Seattle, WA 98101
[phone] | Fax [phone]