Category: Harris v State Farm

SLABBED Monthly – September (catching up on Rigsby, Bossier, Robohm, Anthony, Harris, Montet, Lizana, and New Light Baptist v State Farm)

Thirty days hath September; but, this September it would take 60 to get everything done – and I’m not the only one wondering if the season is called “fall” because those who don’t fall behind are about to fall over.  Sop sends me text messages as he and little Sop make their way from football practice to a soccer game; and, I text back as soon as I find a place to pull over.  Since we can’t begin October without September done, I’ve grabbed a handful of incomplete posts and tossed the basic information into this update.

Rigsby v State Farm:

NOTICE of Hearing: Telephonic Status Conference set for 10/13/2009 01:30 PM before Magistrate Judge Robert H. Walker to establish a scheduling order for the discovery and trial of the Relators claim. One week prior to the conference, counsel are to submit, via email, a confidential memo in PDF format, detailing anticipated discovery by each party (including the number and names of deponents) and a requested time frame for discovery.

Bossier v State Farm

Several interesting developments here including this surprising one – Judge Walker issued an Order denying (yes, denying) a State Farm motion!

The evidence presented to the Court is uncontested that Fountain prepared the affidavit; that the affidavit included only part of what Ziz told Fountain; and that it omitted information about the rapid rise of flood waters from the Bay of  Biloxi. This Court finds such evidence insufficient to warrant disqualification of counsel. It is therefore, ORDERED that the motion to disqualify Attorney Stanton J. Fountain , Jr. as counsel for Plaintiff is denied.

Bossier’s counsel, coast attorney Judy Guice aka Seabiscuit (Judybisquit) withdrew the motion to expedit a  hearing on sanctions against State Farm for violation of the court’s September 3 order pending review of the documents belatedly provided by State Farm. (emphasis added)

On September 24, 2009, at approximately noon, counsel for Plaintiff received four discs represented to contain claims files ordered by this Honorable Court on September 3, 2009. Said discs appear to contain documents relating to approximately 150 claims files. (emphasis on 150 added!)

Meanwhile, State Farm has filed Continue reading “SLABBED Monthly – September (catching up on Rigsby, Bossier, Robohm, Anthony, Harris, Montet, Lizana, and New Light Baptist v State Farm)”

Keeping score #6 – Plaintiffs leading 2-0 on Protective Orders until Walker called Spragins safe on a foul!

Oh the games people play now
Every night and every day now

First, the line up. Pitchers are on rotation – O’Keefe, Harris, and Jordan. Webb Sanders was at bat for State Farm in O’Keefe and Scot Spragins the designated hitter for the team in Harris and Jordan. Making the calls were Magistrates Parker, Alexander, and Walker.

Oh the games people play now
Every night and every day now

Now for the play-by-play in this game of Protective Orders.

Stepping to the plate for Webb, Paige Bush tipped a Motion for Protective Order in O’Keefe straight to Christopher Van Cleve who caught two significant changes from previously agreed to Orders.

Magistrate Judge Alexander, called the out with this Order for the Ozerden court:

Defendant State Farm requests the Court to enter a Protective Order in this cause… Plaintiffs contend that Defendant State Farm’s proposed Order is overly broad on its face because it seeks to make all documents and information produced by State Farm, or any of its agents or representatives, “confidential.”

For the reasons set forth in the pleadings, the Court finds that Defendant State Farm’s proposed Protective Order is overly broad and shall not be entered. However, the Court finds Defendant has established good cause for entry of an Order. Defendant’s Motion for Protective Order is hereby GRANTED only to the extent that Plaintiffs’ alternative proposed Protective Order shall be entered.

Spragins took a swing at Harris in State Farm’s Motion for Protective Order.

Van Cleve caught that one, too and Magistrate Judge Parker called Continue reading “Keeping score #6 – Plaintiffs leading 2-0 on Protective Orders until Walker called Spragins safe on a foul!”

Condoms in the courtroom – State Farm wears protection, wants to %#!# you! EDITED

All hands on deck and four feet on the floor – counsel for plaintiff D. Neil Harris, Sr.  has filed a  Response in Opposition to State Farm’s Motion for Protective Order that reads like the legal version of Necking and Petting and How Far to Go.

Appropriately so, I might add, as the protective orders granted State Farm are like condoms in the courtroom- needed, of course, since State Farms wears protection because it wants to %#!# you.

Quite simply, State Farm, while acknowledging the Plaintiffs’ right to discover claims procedures, coverage interpretation documents and similar information in the prosecution of their claims for bad faith and fraudulent claims practices, wants to make sure that any evidence proving Plaintiffs’ allegations of institutional fraud is not made available to the public…

State Farm is asking this Court to enter a broad protective Order rendering virtually all the facts developed in this litigation regarding State Farm’s conduct confidential.

State Farm’s request is representative of a growing practice in our Courts of defendants seeking to limit evidence of misconduct in one case to that case, to prevent the public from being apprised of the type of conduct that defendant has undertaken in the community – and to burden plaintiffs and their lawyers with additional expense and time obligations to “re-develop” the same information in related litigation.

Limiting evidence of misconduct is indeed a growing practice – so much so that Hickman, Goza and Spragins, counsel for State Farm, sent Counsel for Plaintiffs an email, dated March 2, 2009, wherein they suggested entry of a consent protective Order incorrectly referred to as “standard” in Katrina litigation.

We’ll call the State Farm standard their missionary motion to make a distinction between that position and the more penetrating position State Farm counsel pulled from the KamaSutra of motion practice and proposed for the Harris litigation. Continue reading “Condoms in the courtroom – State Farm wears protection, wants to %#!# you! EDITED”