Free Motion for Extension of Time to Complete Discovery - District Court of Federal Claims - federal

Case 1:07-cv-00195-MMS

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Filed 01/10/2008

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IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF FEDERAL CLAIMS DARRELL BOYE et al., Plaintiffs, v. THE UNITED STATES, Defendant. ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) )

No. 07-195C (Judge Sweeney)

DEFENDANT'S UNOPPOSED MOTION FOR AN ENLARGEMENT OF TIME Pursuant to RCFC 6(b), defendant requests an enlargement of time of 30 days in this case, to and including March 21, 2008, within which to complete the limited discovery permitted by the Court in its November 20, 2007 order. Pursuant to the Court's order, the limited discovery permitted by the Court must be completed by February 20, 2008. Plaintiffs' counsel informed the undersigned counsel by telephone on January 9, 2008, that plaintiffs do not oppose this motion for an enlargement of time. On December 5, 2007, the plaintiffs served the Government with requests for production of documents and notices of deposition pursuant to Rule 30(b)(6). On January 2, 2008, the Government produced to the plaintiffs all of the 638 contracts regarding criminal investigators and law enforcement officers from 2002 through 2007. The Government is locating additional responsive, non-privileged documents which fall within the scope of the Court's discovery order. Additional time is necessary for Bureau of Indian Affairs ("BIA") personnel to locate and review potentially responsive documents, and for counsel to review all potentially responsive documents for privilege and physically produce any responsive non-privileged documents, and because of the intervening holiday period which delayed these efforts. The Government requested that the plaintiffs grant the Government an extension of 30 days to respond to the written discovery

Case 1:07-cv-00195-MMS

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requests. Plaintiffs' counsel have stated that they will only agree to such an extension if the Government moves for an enlargement of time of the close of discovery. In addition, a dispute has arisen regarding the scope of the discovery sought by the plaintiffs. The Government has attempted to confer with the plaintiffs regarding these issues, but the parties have been unable to reach a resolution. Accordingly, the Government intends to move for a protective order that some of the discovery sought by the plaintiffs not be had on the ground that the discovery falls outside the limited discovery permitted by the Court's November 20, 2007 order. For the foregoing reasons, we respectfully request that the Court grant this unopposed motion for an enlargement of time.

Respectfully submitted, JEFFREY S. BUCHOLTZ Acting Assistant Attorney General JEANNE E. DAVIDSON Director s/ Martin F. Hockey, Jr. MARTIN F. HOCKEY, JR. Assistant Director

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Of Counsel: ALTON E. WOODS Assistant Solicitor JAMES L. WEINER Attorney-Advisor Office of the Solicitor United States Department of the Interior 1849 C Street, N.W. Room No. 7326 Washington, DC 20240 Tel: (202) 208-6984 Fax: (202)208-6475 January 10, 2008

s/ Maame A.F. Ewusi-Mensah MAAME A.F. EWUSI-MENSAH Trial Attorney Commercial Litigation Branch Civil Division Department of Justice 1100 L Street, N.W. Attn: Classification Unit 8th Floor Washington, D.C. 20530 Tel: (202) 353-0503 Fax: (202) 514-8624

Attorneys for Defendant

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Case 1:07-cv-00195-MMS

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CERTIFICATE OF FILING I hereby certify that on this 10th day of January 2008, a copy of the foregoing "DEFENDANT'S UNOPPOSED MOTION FOR AN ENLARGEMENT OF TIME" was filed electronically. I understand that notice of this filing will be sent to all parties by operation of the Court's electronic filing system. The parties may access this filing through the Court's system.

s/ Maame A.F. Ewusi-Mensah

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