Free Motion for Extension of Time to File Response/Reply - District Court of Colorado - Colorado

Case 1:00-cv-02350-LTB-MJW

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Filed 02/13/2006

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLORADO

Civil Action No. 00-CV-02350-LTB-MJW PAULETTE GOMEZ, Plaintiff, v. KING SOOPERS, INC., Defendant.

PLAINTIFF'S UNOPPOSED MOTION FOR EXTENSION TO FILE RESPONSE TO DEFENDANT'S MOTION FOR ATTORNEYS' AND EXPERT'S FEES

Plaintiff Paulette Gomez, by and through her attorneys, Smith & West, LLC, hereby requests a seven-day extension of time to and including February 20, 2006 to file Plaintiff's Response to Defendant's Motion for Attorneys' and Expert's Fees, pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 6(b)(1) and D.C.COLO.L.Civ.R. 6.1B, as grounds therefore, states as follows: 1. Plaintiff respectfully requests an extension of one week, or up to and including

February 20, 2006, to file her Response in Opposition to Defendant's Motion for Attorneys' and Expert's Fees. The present deadline for the Response in Opposition to Defendant's motion is February 13, 2006, and this request is timely filed pursuant to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and this Court's Local Rules. 2. Good cause exists for this extension. As this Court well knows, Plaintiff has been

ill-served by her former attorneys throughout the duration of this action. The failure of such

Case 1:00-cv-02350-LTB-MJW

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counsel to respond to Defendant's pending motion is merely the latest manifestation of behavior that consistently has prejudiced Plaintiff. A refusal to extend the deadline for submitting a responsive motion will severely prejudice Plaintiff; possibly exposing her to liabilities in excess of $38,000. 3. Concurrent with the filing of this motion, Plaintiff's new counsel, Smith & West,

LLC has entered an appearance in this matter on behalf of Plaintiff. Plaintiff was referred to Smith & West, LLC on February 8, 2005. Counsel has had only a brief opportunity to confer with Plaintiff and to begin review of the case file. Indeed counsel was not able to complete its rudimentary assessment of the matter and agree to representation until after the close of business on February 10, 2006. 4. Given the pendancy of this action since November, 2000, extending matters by a

single week will not be prejudicial to Defendant. Moreover, the exposure Plaintiff faces if not competently represented in connection with Defendant's motion, upwards of $38,000, is potentially catastrophic given her modest resources. 5. This requested extension will not affect the timing of the hearing on Defendant's

Motion for Attorneys' and Expert's Fees, the date of which has not been set. 6. No prior extensions of the deadline for filing a Response to Defendant's Motion

for Attorneys' and Expert's Fees have been sought.

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CERTIFICATION OF COMPLIANCE WITH D.C.COLO.L.Civ.R. 7.1(A) Pursuant to D.C.COLO.L.Civ.R. 7.1, counsel for Plaintiff has conferred with Defendant's counsel, who does not oppose the extension requested herein.

Dated: February 13, 2006 Respectfully submitted, SMITH & WEST, LLC ______s/Jessica L. West___________ Jessica L. West, Esq. Blake Street Terrace 1860 Blake Street, Suite 420 Denver, Colorado 80202 (303) 391-0100/Telephone (303) 391-0102/Facsimile [email protected] Attorneys for Plaintiff

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CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I HEREBY CERTIFY that on this 13th day of February, 2006, I electronically filed the foregoing with the Clerk of the Court using the CM/ECF system which will send notification of such filing to the following email addresses: [email protected] [email protected] And on the 13th day of February, 2006 by United States Mail, postage prepaid to: Ms. Paulette Gomez 11108 Eudora Circle Thornton, CO 80233

______s/Jessica L. West___________ Jessica L. West, Esq. Smith & West LLC Blake Street Terrace 1860 Blake Street, Suite 420 Denver, Colorado 80202 (303) 391-0100/Telephone (303) 391-0102/Facsimile [email protected]