Tillman v. United States of America

Filing 17

ORDER granting Parties' 16 Second Stipulated MOTION for Extension of Pretrial Deadlines. The new trial date and pretrial deadlines are: 5-Day Bench Trial is set for 2/10/2025 at 09:00 AM before Judge Marsha J. Pechman. Reports from e xpert witnesses under FRCP 26(a)(2) due by 7/15/2024, All motions related to discovery must be filed by 8/15/2024, Discovery completed by 9/13/2024, Dispositive motions due by 10/14/2024, Motions in Limine due by 1/7/2025, Agreed Pretrial Order due by 1/28/2025, Trial Briefs and Proposed Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law to be submitted by 1/28/2025, Pretrial Conference set for 1/30/2025 at 01:30 PM before Judge Marsha J. Pechman. Signed by Judge Marsha J. Pechman. (KRA)

The Honorable Marsha J. Pechman

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE
WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON
AT SEATTLE

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LENOR TILLMAN,

Case No. 2:23-cv-01070-MJP
Plaintiff,

SECOND STIPULATED MOTION AND
[PROPOSED] ORDER FOR EXTENSION
OF PRETRIAL DEADLINES

v.

12 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
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Noted for Consideration:
May 9, 2024

Defendant.

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JOINT STIPULATION

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The parties hereby jointly STIPULATE AND AGREE to extend the following deadlines,

17 which were set forth in the Court’s December 1, 2023, Order Setting Trial Date & Related Dates
18 (Dkt. 11), as set forth below.
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Deadline

Current Deadline

New Deadline

December 16, 2024

On or after
February 10, 2025

Reports from expert witnesses under
FRCP 26(a)(2) due

May 20, 2024

July 15, 2024

All motions related to discovery must be
filed by and noted on the motion calendar
on the third Friday thereafter (CR 7(d))

June 20, 2024

August 15, 2024

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TRIAL DATE

SECOND STIPULATED MOTION AND [PROPOSED] ORDER FOR
EXTENSION OF PRETRIAL DEADLINES
[Case No. 2:23-cv-01070-MJP] - 1

UNITED STATES ATTORNEY
700 STEWART STREET, SUITE 5220
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON 98101
[phone]

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Discovery completed by

July 19, 2024

September 13, 2024

All dispositive motions must be filed by
and noted on the motion calendar no later
than the fourth Friday thereafter (see CR
7(d)(3)).

August 19, 2024

October 14, 2024

All motions in limine must be filed by
and noted on the motion calendar no
earlier than the third Friday thereafter and
no later than the Friday before the pretrial
conference.

November 12, 2024

January 7, 2025

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Agreed pretrial order due

December 3, 2024

January 28, 2025

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Trial briefs and Proposed Findings of Fact
and Conclusions of Law

December 3, 2024

January 28, 2025

Pretrial conference

December 5, 2024
At 01:30 PM

On or after
January 30, 2025

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A court may modify a schedule for good cause. Fed. R. Civ. P. 16(b)(4). Continuing

13 pretrial and trial dates is within the discretion of the trial judge. King v. State of California, 784
14 F.2d 910, 912 (9th Cir. 1986). The parties request that the Court extend the currently scheduled
15 deadlines in the case by eight weeks, because the parties cannot complete expert and fact
16 discovery within the schedule set by the Court.
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Plaintiff asserts that she sustained several injuries as a result of the incident alleged in the

18 Complaint, including exacerbation of post-concussive syndrome and injuries to her right
19 shoulder, right wrist and thumb, right ankle, left hip, collarbone, back, and neck. Plaintiff has
20 sought treatment for these injuries from multiple providers and specialists, requiring the parties
21 to collect and review voluminous medical records from multiple different medical groups. The
22 parties stipulated to a subpoena for medical records in December 2023. Defendant has been
23 collecting records and providing them to Plaintiff since that time. Throughout discovery,
24 Defendant has learned of additional providers that have been added to the subpoena. Plaintiff
SECOND STIPULATED MOTION AND [PROPOSED] ORDER FOR
EXTENSION OF PRETRIAL DEADLINES
[Case No. 2:23-cv-01070-MJP] - 2

UNITED STATES ATTORNEY
700 STEWART STREET, SUITE 5220
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON 98101
[phone]

1 gave permission to add those additional providers to the stipulation in late February 2024. The
2 most recent production of records was in April 2024, and the parties are continuing to seek
3 additional medical records from at least one provider that has not yet responded to the subpoena.
4 The parties have also collected and are reviewing medical records relating to Plaintiff’s medical
5 condition from before the incident alleged in the Complaint, which also included multiple
6 different providers for multiple different conditions. As more records are obtained, the parties’
7 experts need additional time to review the material and potentially revise their opinions.
8 Defendant cannot schedule Plaintiff’s deposition until it has collected all of her medical records.
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The Court recently denied without prejudice a request that sought more time and

10 suggested that the parties could refile if they provided additional information. Dkt. 15. The
11 parties have retained experts who are currently reviewing medical records and, while the parties
12 have made efforts to narrow the scope of the records being reviewed, the records remain
13 voluminous. Moreover, Defendant has retained one expert who unexpectedly “departed” on a
14 previously undisclosed leave and informed Defendant that he will not be able to work on this
15 matter in the previously agreed upon schedule. Defendant is currently working to retain another
16 expert, but any new expert will not be able to complete their review within the current schedule.
17 In general, for at least Defendant, it has been difficult to locate experts with availability. For
18 those that have been retained, they need additional time to review the records. The parties also
19 anticipate that deposition testimony will affect the experts’ opinions.
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Good cause also exists because the parties are currently working to schedule and take the

21 depositions of Plaintiff, multiple medical providers, and In Sook Ma, the former USPS driver
22 involved in the incident alleged in the Complaint. Ms. Ma is no longer employed with the U.S.
23 Postal Service, and Defendant has been trying for a significant amount of time to locate and
24 contact Ms. Ma, but it has been unsuccessful. Defendant has shared her contact information with
SECOND STIPULATED MOTION AND [PROPOSED] ORDER FOR
EXTENSION OF PRETRIAL DEADLINES
[Case No. 2:23-cv-01070-MJP] - 3

UNITED STATES ATTORNEY
700 STEWART STREET, SUITE 5220
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON 98101
[phone]

1 Plaintiff so that she can try and contact Ms. Ma separately. It is highly likely that Ms. Ma’s
2 testimony will be important for the Plaintiff and the parties’ experts. The parties will thereby
3 need additional time to conduct discovery, including locating witnesses and scheduling
4 depositions.
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The parties submit that good cause exists to extend the remaining deadlines in the case by

6 eight weeks to afford the parties adequate time to prepare their respective cases. The remaining
7 dates would need to be similarly extended so that the parties have adequate time to prepare for
8 and brief dispositive motions and motions in limine, prepare pre-trial materials for the Court, and
9 provide time for the Court to rule on any pre-trial matters.
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For the reasons set forth above, the parties believe that there is good cause to extend the

11 above-listed dates and respectfully request that the Court grant their motion. The parties have
12 conferred and agreed to an eight-week extension but would appreciate any amount of time the
13 Court sees fit to extend the matter.
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Should the proposed trial date not work for the Court, the parties have set forth their

15 current scheduling conflicts below:
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Plaintiff: Plaintiff’s counsel is set to commence trial on the following dates: January 6–17,

17 2025, and April 14–22, 2025.
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Defendant: Defense counsel is set to commence trial in this District on the following dates:

19 December 10–18, 2024, January 6–10, 2025, February 24 – March 3, 2025, March 10–14, 2025,
20 and March 17–21, 2025.
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SECOND STIPULATED MOTION AND [PROPOSED] ORDER FOR
EXTENSION OF PRETRIAL DEADLINES
[Case No. 2:23-cv-01070-MJP] - 4

UNITED STATES ATTORNEY
700 STEWART STREET, SUITE 5220
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON 98101
[phone]

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SO STIPULATED.

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DATED this 9th day of May, 2024.

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Respectfully submitted,

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TESSA M. GORMAN
United States Attorney

RUSSELL & HILL, PLLC

s/ Lyndsie R. Schmalz
LYNDSIE R. SCHMALZ, CA No. 285004

s/ Dean Swanson
DEAN F. SWANSON, WSBA No. 40638
3811-A Broadway
Everett, WA 98201
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]

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s/ Nickolas Bohl
NICKOLAS BOHL, WSBA No. 48978
Assistant United States Attorneys
United States Attorney’s Office
Western District of Washington
700 Stewart Street, Suite 5220
Seattle, WA 98101-1271
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
Email: [e-mail]

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Attorneys for United States of America

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I certify that this memorandum contains 989
words, in compliance with the Local Civil
Rules.

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Attorney for Plaintiff

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SECOND STIPULATED MOTION AND [PROPOSED] ORDER FOR
EXTENSION OF PRETRIAL DEADLINES
[Case No. 2:23-cv-01070-MJP] - 5

UNITED STATES ATTORNEY
700 STEWART STREET, SUITE 5220
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON 98101
[phone]

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ORDER

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The Court finds good cause to extend the trial date and case deadlines. It is hereby

3 ORDERED that the parties’ motion is GRANTED. The new trial date and pretrial deadlines are:
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Deadlines
TRIAL DATE

February 10, 2025

Reports from expert witnesses under FRCP 26(a)(2)
due

July 15, 2024

All motions related to discovery must be filed by and
noted on the motion calendar on the third Friday
thereafter (CR 7(d))

August 15, 2024

Discovery completed by

September 13, 2024

All dispositive motions must be filed by and noted on
the motion calendar no later than the fourth Friday
thereafter (see CR 7(d)(3)).
All motions in limine must be filed by and noted on
the motion calendar no earlier than the third Friday
thereafter and no later than the Friday before the
pretrial conference.

October 14, 2024

January 7, 2025

Agreed pretrial order due

January 28, 2025

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Trial briefs and Proposed Findings of Fact and
Conclusions of Law

January 28, 2025

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Pretrial conference

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January 30, 2025 at 1:30 PM

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19 All other requirements set forth in the original Case Schedule Order shall remain in effect.
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DATED this 10th day of May, 2024.

A
MARSHA J. PECHMAN
United States Senior District Judge
SECOND STIPULATED MOTION AND [PROPOSED] ORDER FOR
EXTENSION OF PRETRIAL DEADLINES
[Case No. 2:23-cv-01070-MJP] - 6

UNITED STATES ATTORNEY
700 STEWART STREET, SUITE 5220
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON 98101
[phone]