Arias v. Travelers Casualty Insurance Company of America

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 6 WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON AT SEATTLE DANIEL CORTES ARIAS, No. 2:24-cv-00546-JHC 9 Plaintiff, STIPULATED MOTION TO AMEND 10 v. CASE SCHEDULE & ORDER DENYING MOTION TRAVELERS CASUALTY INSURANCE COMPANY OF AMERICA, Defendant.

14 I. STIPULATED MOTION 15 The parties, by and through their undersigned counsel of record, hereby stipulate and jointly request that the Court amend the case schedule (Dkt. 18) pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. Rule 6 and LCR 10(g).

18 II. LEGAL AUTHORITY A. Applicable Legal Standard 20 A [case] schedule may be modified only for good cause and with the judge’s consent.

21 Fed. R. Civ. P. 16(b)(4); see also LCR 16(b)(6) (“A schedule may be modified only for good cause and with the judge’s consent.”). The decision to modify a scheduling order is within the broad discretion of the district court. See Johnson v. Mammoth Recreations, Inc., 975 F.2d 604, 607 (9th Cir. 1992).

3 B. Good Cause Exists to Extend the Pretrial Deadlines 4 Good cause exists for an extension of the deadline for disclosures. The current deadline for expert disclosures is March 31, 2025. The parties have been working together in good faith to set up a panel Independent Medical Examination for the Plaintiff to attend. Given that the Independent Medical Examination is a panel, it is necessary for the doctors’ schedules to align.

8 There were a few scheduling conflicts regarding the same that arose over the last few months.

9 However, the examination is now scheduled for April 9, 2025, at 10:30 AM. In light of the same, the parties propose that dates related to experts and discovery be extended by 60 days to ensure adequate time for the experts to draft their reports. However, the parties would like to preserve the current trial date. Accordingly, the parties respectfully request that the deadline for settlement conference be extended by 14 days so that no deadlines overlap. The parties do not seek to move pre-trial deadlines following the settlement conference.

EVENT CURRENT DATE PROPOSED DATE Deadline for Amended Pleadings March 31, 2025 May 30, 2025 Disclosure of Expert Testimony March 31, 2025 May 30, 2025 Discovery Motions April 30, 2025 June 30, 2025 Discovery Completed by May 30, 2025 July 29, 2025 Dispositive motions and Expert Witness Motions June 30, 2025 August 29, 2025 Deadline for Settlement Conference August 28, 2025 September 11, 2025 Motions in Limine September 15, 2025 September 15, 2025 Agreed Pretrial Order October 6, 2025 October 6, 2025 Deposition Designations October 8, 2025 October 8, 2025 Pretrial Conference October 14, 2025 October 14, 2025 Trial Briefs, Proposed Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law October 20, 2025 October 20, 2025 Bench Trial October 27, 2025 October 27, 2025 DATED this 12th day of March 2025.

BRAIN INJURY LAW OF SEATTLE, INC. /s/ Scott Blair 8 Scott Blair, WSBA #13428 Cody Branstetter, WSBA #57156 9 437 5th Avenue South, Suite 103 Edmonds, WA 98020 10 [email protected] [email protected] 11 Counsel for Plaintiff Daniel Cortes Arias 12 LETHER LAW GROUP 13 /s/ Alex Goldman Thomas Lether, WSBA #18089 14 Sam Colito, WSBA #42529 Alex Goldman, WSBA #61625 15 1848 Westlake Ave N., Suite 100 Seattle, WA 98109 16 P: 206-467-5444 / F: 206-467-5544 [email protected] 17 [email protected] [email protected] 18 Counsel for Travelers Casualty Insurance Company of America 1 ORDER 2 The Court DENIES the motion because the proposal leaves insufficient time between || the deadline for dispositive motions and expert witness motions and the trial date. The || proposal poses the risks of (1) such motions being decided just before trial; and/or (2) the Court || being unable to rule on all such motions before trial. The parties may file another motion to || amend the case schedule. Given the extensions the parties seek, and the time that the Court needs, it may be advisable to seek a new trial date.

DATED this 12th day of March, 2025. cha. 4. Chun 11 Cfeba A, Chana _ United States District Judge STIPULATED MOTION AND ORDER DENYING — 4 2:24-cv-00546-JHC