Yaghouti v. Standard Insurance Company
- Proceeding
- district
- Area
- civil
- Panel
- Allison H. Goddard (author)
Analysis
The parties filed a joint motion to continue the Early Neutral Evaluation (ENE) and Case Management Conference (CMC) by 120 days to pursue private mediation. The court granted the motion in part, finding good cause for a continuance but deeming the requested 120-day period excessive, and instead ordered the parties to lodge a Joint Mediation Plan by May 12, 2022, before resetting the conferences.
| What the court decided | The model |
|---|---|
Joint Motion to Continue ENE and CMC granted in part“The Court finds good cause to GRANT the motion. ECF No. 15. However, given that the parties anticipate that the private mediation will occur within the next 30 to 45 days, the Court finds the parties’ 120-day continuance request to be excessive at this time.” | agree with court The court correctly applied the 'good cause' standard required by the Local Rules and Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 6(b). The parties demonstrated diligence and a concrete plan for resolution (private mediation), satisfying the threshold for a continuance. The court's discretion to limit the duration of the continuance to match the anticipated timeline of the mediation (30-45 days) rather than the requested 120 days is a reasonable exercise of case management authority to prevent unnecessary delay. |
Order to lodge Joint Mediation Plan by May 12, 2022“By May 12, 2022, the parties shall lodge (not file) a Joint Mediation Plan via email at efile_goddard@casd.uscourts.gov.” | agree with court This is a procedural directive consistent with the court's finding that the 120-day continuance was excessive. Requiring a specific plan with firm dates ensures the parties adhere to the shorter timeline the court deemed appropriate. |
The order itself: sound — The order is procedurally sound. It correctly identifies the applicable standard (good cause), cites the relevant Ninth Circuit precedent defining that standard, and applies it to the specific facts presented (parties' diligence and pending mediation). The court's decision to grant the continuance but limit its scope is a standard and appropriate exercise of case management discretion.
Opinion
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 10 SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 11 12 FARZAD YAGHOUTI, Case No.: 3:21-cv-01621-AJB-AHG 13 Plaintiff, ORDER GRANTING IN PART JOINT MOTION TO CONTINUE 14 v. EARLY NEUTRAL EVALUATION 15 STANDARD INSURANCE COMPANY, CONFERENCE AND CASE MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE 16 Defendant.
17 [ECF No. 15] 18 19 Before the Court is the parties’ joint motion to continue the Early Neutral Evaluation 20 Conference (“ENE”) and Case Management Conference (“CMC”), which are scheduled 21 for May 12, 2022. ECF No. 15. The parties seek an order from the Court continuing these 22 conferences by approximately 120 days. Id. 23 Parties seeking to continue an ENE must demonstrate good cause. ECF No. 14 at 7 24 (“An ENE may be rescheduled only upon a showing of good cause”); Chmb.R. at 2 (stating 25 that any request for continuance requires “[a] showing of good cause for the request”); see 26 also FED. R. CIV. P. 6(b) (“When an act may or must be done within a specified time, the 27 court may, for good cause, extend the time”). 28 1 “Good cause” is a non-rigorous standard that has been construed broadly across 2 procedural and statutory contexts. Ahanchian v. Xenon Pictures, Inc., 624 F.3d 1253, 1259 3 (9th Cir. 2010). The good cause standard focuses on the diligence of the party seeking to 4 amend the scheduling order and the reasons for seeking modification. Johnson v. Mammoth 5 Recreations, Inc., 975 F.2d 604, 609 (9th Cir. 1992) (“[T]he focus of the inquiry is upon 6 the moving party’s reasons for seeking modification. . . . If that party was not diligent, the 7 inquiry should end.”) (internal citation omitted). 8 Here, the parties have represented to the Court that they have resolved Plaintiff’s 9 claim for breach of contract, and are currently engaged in informal resolution of Plaintiff’s 10 claim for breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, including damages 11 related to attorney fees. ECF No. 15 at 3; ECF No. 15-1 at 2. The parties are in contact with 12 Arnold Levinson from ADR Services and anticipate they will be able to complete the 13 mediation process within the next 30 to 45 days. Id. Thus, because “they are cautiously 14 optimistic they will fully resolve the dispute through the mediation process and without 15 burdening the Court,” the parties request a 120-day continuance of the ENE. Id. 16 The Court appreciates that the parties have been working together, and the Court 17 finds good cause to GRANT the motion. ECF No. 15. However, given that the parties 18 anticipate that the private mediation will occur within the next 30 to 45 days, the Court 19 finds the parties’ 120-day continuance request to be excessive at this time. Thus, the Court 20 ORDERS the following: 21 1. By May 12, 2022, the parties shall lodge (not file) a Joint Mediation Plan 22 via email at efile_goddard@casd.uscourts.gov. The joint plan must state: 23 A. The firm date of private mediation; 24 B. The identity of the mediator; and 25 C. If applicable, a complete list of informal discovery the parties agree to 26 exchange before mediation and a firm deadline by which the parties 27 will exchange the informal discovery. 28 1 2. The ENE and CMC originally rescheduled for May 12, 2022, as well as the 2 || accompanying pre-conference deadlines, are CONTINUED. The Court will reset the ENE 3 |}and CMC upon receipt of the parties’ Joint Mediation Plan. 4 5 IT IS SO ORDERED. 6 Dated: April 22, 2022 JpwornH. Xho Honorable Allison H. Goddard 8 United States Magistrate Judge 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28