Paz Gomez v. Reyes Gonzalez

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 6 WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON AT SEATTLE RUBEN PAZ GOMEZ, CASE NO. C24-5645-KKE Plaintiff, ORDER FOR SCHEDULING v. CONFERENCE YANISLEIDY REYES GONZALEZ, Defendant.

Petitioner, Ruben Paz Gomez, filed this case under the Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction (“Convention”) and the International Child Abductions Remedies Act (“ICARA”), 42 U.S.C. § 9001. Dkt. No. 12. On September 25, 2024, Respondent Yanisleidy Reyes Gonzalez filed an answer to the petition. Dkt. No. 22.

Under the Convention and ICARA, the Court must “‘use the most expeditious procedures available’ to decide petitions arising under the Convention, with decisions generally expected within six weeks from the date of filing.” Colchester v. Lazaro, 16 F.4th 712, 717 (9th Cir. 2021).

The Court must ensure this case is handled expeditiously and thus ORDERS the following: 1. A Scheduling Conference is set for Friday, October 4, 2024 at 10:00 AM via Zoom.

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22 pwd=xYoNej6tSmerW6yAP3qaU32GYbaVAW.1 23 Meeting ID: 161 786 3181 Passcode: 888036 1 2. Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43, the Court finds this case warrants 2 appointment of an interpreter for both Petitioner and Respondent for this hearing. Fed. 3 R. Civ. P. 43(d). The Court will arrange for the appointment of a Spanish interpreter for the scheduling conference on a cost-reimbursable basis.1 5 3. If Respondent YANISLEIDY REYES GONZALEZ needs an attorney and is not able 6 to afford one, she should complete and file an “Application for Court-Appointed 7 Counsel for Civil Rights Cases” available on the Court’s website at: 8 https://www.wawd.uscourts.gov/court-forms#Pro%20Se. This application should be 9 completed as soon as possible.

10 4. The Parties should be prepared to discuss the following topics at the hearing: the safety 11 of the child, Respondent’s efforts to locate counsel, whether a Guardian Ad Litem 12 should be appointed, any other pending cases between the Parties, the need for 13 discovery, the timing and length of the evidentiary hearing and the Parties’ anticipated 14 witnesses and exhibits, and whether mediation should be ordered.

15 5. Petitioner’s counsel is ordered to provide a copy of this order to Respondent by mail 16 and email.

18 Dated this 27th day of September, 2024.

A Kymberly K. Evanson 21 United States District Judge This means that the Court will pay any up-front costs necessary to secure an interpreter for the hearing and will revisit the issue of how to apportion responsibility for reimbursing the Court for those costs, if necessary, at a later time.