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

Case 1:05-cv-00142-NBF

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IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF FEDERAL CLAIMS ARTURO MORENO, JR., et al., Plaintiffs, v. THE UNITED STATES, Defendant. ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) )

No. 05-142C (Judge Firestone)

DEFENDANT'S UNOPPOSED MOTION FOR AN ENLARGEMENT OF TIME Pursuant to RCFC 6(b), defendant requests an enlargement of time of 45 days in this case, to and including January 15, 2007, within which to complete fact discovery. Pursuant to the Court's

order on September 28, 2006, fact discovery in this case regarding the issue of liability is presently scheduled to end on December 1, 2006.1 Plaintiffs' counsel has indicated that he

does not oppose this motion for an enlargement of time. The Government initially responded to plaintiffs' written discovery requests on August 4, 2006, and has supplemented its document production on multiple occasions. However, the parties

continue to attempt to resolve plaintiffs' discovery concerns in this case and in Porta as expressed by plaintiffs' counsel in a letter sent by electronic mail on September 18, 2006, and in the Moreno status conference on October 11, 2006. The parties

continue to actively attempt to identify the remaining issues of

Defendant is simultaneously filing a similar motion in the related case of Porta v. United States, No. 05-14210C (Fed. Cl.), for which fact discovery on liability is also scheduled to end on December 1, 2006.

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fact and law, and narrow or clarify the scope of plaintiffs' prior discovery requests such that the Government can locate and produce any additional potentially relevant non-privileged documents, or respond otherwise. Following the Moreno status conference, the Government expanded its search for relevant documents in Moreno and Porta to include the Office of Personnel Management ("OPM") and the Justice Management Division ("JMD") of the Department of Justice ("DOJ"). The Government proposed a draft joint stipulation of

fact and law intended for use in this case and Porta on November 2, 2006. Plaintiffs' counsel conducted a Rule 30(b)(6)

deposition of Wayne Coleman on November 2, 2006, and November 3, 2006, and is scheduled to depose Vicki Draper of OPM on November 30, 2006. A Rule 30(b)(6) deposition is scheduled in Because the principal attorney for

Porta on November 29, 2006.

the Government will be on official travel from the afternoon of November 27, 2006, through December 1, 2006, he has arranged for substitute counsel to attend the depositions scheduled for November 29, 2006, and November 30, 2006, prior to the December 1, 2006, scheduled close of discovery in this case and Porta. Despite substantial efforts of the parties to complete fact discovery on liability prior to the scheduled close of discovery, additional time is required. Additional time is necessary for

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JMD personnel to complete review of potentially responsive documents, including contacting originating agencies concerning potentially privileged documents, and for DOJ to review all JMD documents for privilege and physically produce any responsive non-privileged documents, and because of scheduled leave of necessary JMD personnel, and the upcoming holiday period. Additional time will also provide plaintiffs' counsel sufficient time to propound anticipated formal discovery requests in response to depositions in Moreno and Porta, and for the Government to respond appropriately. Further, the parties intend

to request that the Court issue protective orders in this case and in Porta to permit the Government promptly to produce certain documents that otherwise may not be disclosed pursuant to the Privacy Act. For the foregoing reasons, we respectfully request that the Court grant this unopposed motion for an enlargement of time. Respectfully submitted, PETER D. KEISLER Assistant Attorney General DAVID M. COHEN Director s/ Kathryn A. Bleecker KATHRYN A. BLEECKER Assistant Director

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s/ Jeffrey S. Pease JEFFREY S. PEASE Trial Attorney Commercial Litigation Branch Civil Division Department of Justice Attn: Classification Unit 8th Floor 1100 L Street, NW Washington, D.C. 20530 Tel: (202) 353-7991 Fax: (202) 514-8624 November 27, 2006 Attorneys for Defendant

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CERTIFICATE OF FILING I hereby certify that on this 27th day of November 2006, 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. filing through the Court's system. Parties may access this

s/ Jeffrey S. Pease