Tag: Montet 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)”

What’s the score? 0 – 2 on tail-wagging-dog Protective Orders

Right of the bat, we’re going to find out if I cut my 7th inning stretch short.   Frankly, what I found when I later turned my attention to the docket of the day to check for any additions in cases SLABBED made me wonder if one day of reflection was going to be sufficient.

Magistrate Judge Parker pitched a Protective Order to State Farm in Lizana and Magistrate Judge Walker tossed the Company another in Montet .  Since it took Parker 2 (pages) to do what Walker did in 7, Parker is up first for examination:

State Farm has cited numerous cases within this jurisdiction, with facts and issues very similar to those involved in this matter, wherein protective orders have been entered with respect to the same types of information at issue here. As in those cases, State Farm has demonstrated good cause for the entry of a protective order and, accordingly, the motion will be GRANTED.

Walker said much the same, however:

The court, being duly advised in the premises, finds that good cause exists for the issuance of a Protective Order; therefore, it is ORDERED and ADJUDGED…

Now, a good portion of my 7th inning stretch was devoted to reflecting on “good cause” for a protective order in discovery.  I’ve observed that counsel for both parties in a case and the District Court “hang their hat” with the Fifth Circuit and, since I’m neither a lawyer nor an officer of the Court, I decided that I’d follow and hang mine on the 5th’s order quoted in the most recent SLABBED update on Montet which clearly states: Continue reading “What’s the score? 0 – 2 on tail-wagging-dog Protective Orders”

The fastest way to succeed is to look as if you’re playing by somebody else’s rules, while quietly playing by your own – an update on Montet v State Farm and Politz v Nationwide

It certain seems to be the way to succeed with protective orders – looking as if you’re playing by somebody else’s rules, while quietly playing by your own. Perhaps someone at the Court will soon catch on with so many different plaintiffs’ counsel voicing opposition to the Gomer strategy.

Montet’s counsel, DeborahTrotter, certainly could not have made her opposition plainer in the Sur Reply she filed today refuting  defendant State Farm’s Rebuttal in Montet v State Farm:

Plaintiffs’ hereby incorporate their Reply in its entirety and maintain their position that the Defendant has not met its burden to demonstrate the documents and information at issue in its privilege log… should be deemed confidential and protected. Therefore any protective order at this time would be premature, including Defendant’s newly proposed “blanket” protective order, which was attached as Exhibit C to its Rebuttal…

Again Plaintiffs point out that Defendant has listed only 46 documents in “II. Privilege Log” that allegedly qualify for protection as Trade Secrets. However, instead of complying with the Rules of Civil Procedure 26 and the Uniform Local Rule 26.1 by providing the Court and Plaintiffs with a proper privilege log that contains information required to determine whether a qualifying privilege exists, the Defendant opted to again ignore the requirements of seeking and obtaining a protective order by good cause shown and submitted yet another proposed “blanket” protective order for the Court to enter. (emphasis added)

Rule 26 FRCP provides little bend; and, yet, the sheer number of pages makes a page-by-page determination of good cause a formidable task.

However, the Fifth Circuit provides some guidance in a 2002 Order issued in Continue reading “The fastest way to succeed is to look as if you’re playing by somebody else’s rules, while quietly playing by your own – an update on Montet v State Farm and Politz v Nationwide”