Free Joint Status Report - District Court of Federal Claims - federal

Case 1:98-cv-00614-JFM

Document 275

Filed 04/01/2005

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IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF FEDERAL CLAIMS SOUTHERN NUCLEAR OPERATING, COMPANY, ALABAMA POWER COMPANY, and GEORGIA POWER COMPANY, Plaintiffs, v. THE UNITED STATES, Defendant. ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) )

No. 98-614C (Senior Judge Merow)

JOINT PROPOSED SCHEDULING ORDER Based upon the telephone hearing with this Court on March 23, 2005, and pursuant to the Court's direction for the parties to identify dates for pretrial activities, plaintiffs, Alabama Power Company, Georgia Power Company, and Southern Nuclear Operating Company and defendant, the United States, propose the following pretrial scheduling order: June 1, 2005: August 1, 2005: August 12, 2005: September 2, 2005: September 9, 2005: Discovery deadline for the Government and submission of the Government's expert reports; Discovery deadline for the plaintiffs; Meeting of counsel and exchange of exhibit and witness lists; Plaintiffs' Memorandum of Contentions of Fact and Law; Exchange of objections to exhibits;

September 23, 2005: Defendant's Memorandum of Contentions of Fact and Law; September 23, 2005: Deadline for filing of motions in limine; October 12, 2005: October 17, 2005: Pretrial Conference; and Commencement of trial.

Case 1:98-cv-00614-JFM

Document 275

Filed 04/01/2005

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Plaintiffs have suggested that they may want to have a status conference on or about August 26, 2005, but defendant has not identified a need for such a conference prior to the submission of the parties' pretrial contentions and motions in limine. To resolve their disagreement upon this point, the parties have agreed to advise the Court in advance of August 26, 2005 to schedule a conference at a date and time convenient for the Court if the parties, at that time, believe a status conference would facilitate pretrial proceedings. At this time, the parties are not requesting that the Court reserve a specific date and time for that conference. Additionally, because the deadline for the exchange of exhibit and witness lists is prior to the deadline for the parties' memoranda of contentions of fact and law, the parties reserve the right to supplement the exhibit and witness lists prior to trial. Objections to any exhibits added after the August 12, 2005, deadline are reserved by both parties. Finally, on February 10, 2005, the Government filed a motion for protective order seeking to preclude fact depositions of David Zabransky and Christopher Kouts, which were noticed individually by plaintiffs on January 26, 2005. Subsequently, and based upon this Court's February 14, 2005, order granting, in part, the Government's motion for protective concerning plaintiffs' RCFC 30(b)(6) notice, the Government identified Messrs. Zabransky and Kouts as its RCFC 30(b)(6) deponents to testify concerning the topics identified in the Court's February 14 order. The RCFC 30(b)(6) depositions are scheduled for April 11-12, 2005. Based upon their respective positions, as set forth in the briefs filed in connection with the Government's motion for protective order, the parties believe that the resolution of the pending motion for protective order prior to the RCFC 30(b)(6) depositions will facilitate the orderly completion of fact discovery. 2

Case 1:98-cv-00614-JFM

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Respectfully submitted, S/ M. Stanford Blanton M. Stanford Blanton Balch & Bingham LLP COUNSEL OF RECORD FOR PLAINTIFFS Of Counsel: Ed R. Haden K. C. Hairston BALCH & BINGHAM LLP 1710 Sixth Avenue North Birmingham, AL 35203 Telephone: (205) 251-8100 Facsimile: (205) 226-8798 Ronald A. Schechter Jeffrey L. Handwerker ARNOLD & PORTER 555 Twelfth Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20004-1202 Telephone: (202) 942-5000 Facsimile: (202) 942-5999

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Case 1:98-cv-00614-JFM

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PETER D. KEISLER Assistant Attorney General DAVID M. COHEN Director OF COUNSEL: JANE K. TAYLOR Office of the General Counsel U.S. Department of Energy 1000 Independence Ave., S.W. Washington, D.C. 20585 STEPHEN FINN HEIDE L. HERRMANN Trial Attorneys Commercial Litigation Branch Civil Division Department of Justice Washington, D.C. 20530 s/ Harold D. Lester, Jr. HAROLD D. LESTER, JR. Assistant Director s/ John C. Ekman JOHN C. EKMAN Trial Attorney Commercial Litigation Branch Civil Division Department of Justice Attn: Classification Unit 8th Floor 1100 L Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20530 Tele: (202) 353-0897 Fax: (202) 307-2503 Attorneys for Defendant

April 1, 2005

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Case 1:98-cv-00614-JFM

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Filed 04/01/2005

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CERTIFICATE OF FILING I hereby certify that on this 1st day of April, 2005, a copy of the foregoing "JOINT PROPOSED SCHEDULING ORDER" 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. Parties may access this filing through the Court's system. s/ John C. Ekman