Free Notice of Directly Related Case(s) - District Court of Federal Claims - federal

Case 1:06-cv-00167-TCW

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IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF FEDERAL CLAIMS ________________________________ ) OTAY MESA PROPERTY L.P., et al., ) ) Plaintiffs, ) No. 06-167 L ) v. ) Hon. Lawrence M. Baskir ) UNITED STATES, ) ) Defendant. ) ________________________________ ) NOTICE OF INDIRECTLY-RELATED CASES Defendant, the United States of America, hereby submits this Notice of Indirectly-Related Cases pursuant to RCFC 40.2(b). The above styled action and the cases of International Industrial Park, Inc. v. United States, No. 06-876L, and D & D Landholdings, L.P. v. United States, No. 06-877L, present common issues of fact such that consolidation of the cases and the adoption of a coordinated discovery schedule would significantly promote the efficient administration of justice. The present case was filed on March 3, 2006. An Amended Complaint, adding four additional parcels of adjacent or nearby property to the instant litigation, was filed December 21, 2006. The indirectly related

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Case 1:06-cv-00167-TCW

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cases were both filed December 22, 2006, and involve two additional parcels of land located in the nearby by or adjacent to the real property involved in the instant litigation. Defendant's Answer to the Amended Complaint in the instant litigation was filed January 12, 2007, and the case is in the initial phases of discovery and therefore has not progressed such that it would stand in a significantly different stage of litigation as compared to the newly-filed cases. Moreover, all three cases were filed by the same attorney of record, and each complaint alleges the same operative facts, covers the same time period, and seeks the same relief, just compensation for a physical taking under the Fifth Amendment. The resolution of the allegations raised in all three complaints will involve the same factual and expert witnesses and substantially the same documents. The three complaints contain virtually identical language and include identical factual allegations and requests for relief. The complaints all contend that the United States, acting through agents for the Customs and Border Protection, has physically entered onto Plaintiffs' land continuously for several years, and that the construction of the border fences has intentionally channeled illegal immigrants onto Plaintiffs' land. Because the three complaints present common issues of fact and will

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Case 1:06-cv-00167-TCW

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Filed 01/18/2007

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involve the same factual and expert witnesses and substantially the same documents, Defendant respectfully submits that the consolidation of the two newly-filed cases with the present case would promote the efficient administration of justice. Consolidation would also enable the Court to adopt a coordinated discovery schedule for the three complaints in a situation where, because the same witnesses and documents are involved, would otherwise present the opportunity for confusion and conflict; such would also promote the efficient administration of justice. Dated: January 18, 2007. Respectfully submitted, SUE ELLEN WOOLDRIDGE Assistant Attorney General Environment and Natural Resources Division

/s/ Susan V. Cook SUSAN V. COOK Senior Trial Attorney E. KENNETH STEGEBY Trial Attorney Natural Resources Section Environment & Natural Resources Division United States Department of Justice P.O. Box 663 Washington, DC 20044-0663 (202) 305-0470 (202) 305-0506 (Fax) Email: [email protected] -3-

Case 1:06-cv-00167-TCW

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Filed 01/18/2007

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OF COUNSEL: Melissa Erny A. Ted Kundrat U.S. Customs and Border Protection Indianapolis, Indiana 46278 370771.1

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