Alvarran v. BNSF Railway Company

Filing 21

ORDER by Judge Benjamin H Settle granting 17 Motion to Compel. Plaintiff shall produce outstanding documents requested by September 30, 2011. (TG)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON
AT TACOMA

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JOHN M ALVARRAN,

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Plaintiff,

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v.
BNSF RAILWAY COMPANY, a
Delaware Corporation,

CASE NO. C10-5792BHS
ORDER GRANTING
DEFENDANT’S MOTION TO
COMPEL

Defendant.

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This matter comes before the Court on Defendant’s (“BNSF”) motion to compel
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production of documents (Dkt. 17). The Court has considered the pleadings filed in
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support of and in opposition to the motion and the remainder of the file and hereby grants
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the motion for the reasons stated herein.
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I. PROCEDURAL HISTORY
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On July 28, 2011, BNSF moved the Court to compel Plaintiff (“Alvarran”) to
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produce documents responsive to its discovery request for production No. 15. Dkt. 17.
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On August 4, 2011, Alvarran responded in opposition to BNSF’s motion to compel. Dkt.
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ORDER - 1

1 19. On August 12, 2011, BNSF replied. Alvarran did not move for a protective order
2 regarding this matter.
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II. FACTUAL BACKGROUND
This discovery dispute arises out of Alvarran’s refusal to produce certain

5 documents requested by BNSF. In Request No. 15, BNSF made the following request:
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Please produce all documents pertaining to your income, expenses
and debt for each of the past five (5) years, to include tax returns, W-2
wage and earning statements, mortgage payements, car payments, vacation
expenses, purchases of single items priced higher than $1,000 (i.e., car,
boat, recreational vehicle (RV), gun, television, etc.), bank statements and
balances, and credit card statements and balances.

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Dkt. 17. It is undisputed that Alvarran produced his pay stubs, W-2s, and tax returns. It is
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also undisputed that Alvarran has not produced the remainder of the requested
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documents.
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On June 9, 2011, the parties engaged in a discovery conference to discuss the
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documents withheld by Alvarran in response to Request No. 15. Declaratioin of Debra
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Dickerson (Dickerson Decl., Dkt. 18) ¶ 4. BNSF maintains, and Alvarran does not
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dispute, that Alvarran agreed at the discovery conference to produce the withheld
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documents. However, no production has been made to date, which is the basis for the
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instant motion to compel.
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III. DISCUSSION
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To resolve this simple discovery dispute, the Court need not delve into the
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agreement(s) made or not made during the parties’ discovery conference. In this case,
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Alvarran’s Complaint includes a claim for “past, present and future non-economic
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ORDER - 2

1 damages because [he is] disabled” and does not think his life “will ever be the same.”
2 See, e.g., Dickerson Decl., Ex. A. at 4 (Alvarran’s answer to Interrogatory No. 14). In
3 short, Alvarran is making a claim against BNSF for lost physical activity and enjoyment
4 of life. Based on this claim, the Court agrees with BNSF that Alvarran has placed his
5 financial history at issue.
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As BNSF persuasively points out, Alvarran’s “financial documents can concretely

7 confirm and clarify his whereabouts and activities.” Because this evidence may be highly
8 probative to BNSF’s case and is not an unduly burdensome or an overly broad request,
9 BNSF is entitled to discover all of the requested documents within the scope of its
10 Request No. 15.
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IV. ORDER
Therefore, it is hereby ORDERED that BNSF’s motion to compel (Dkt. 17) is

13 GRANTED; Alvarran SHALL produce the outstanding documents requested by no later
14 than September 30, 2011.
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Dated this 13th day of September 2011.

A

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BENJAMIN H. SETTLE
United States District Judge

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ORDER - 3