Opinion
CV-21-00818-PHX-DLR
01-18-2022
Pete Fuentes, Plaintiff, v. Planet Fitness, Defendant.
ORDER
Douglas L. Rayes United States District Judge
Plaintiff Pete Fuentes brought this action against Defendant Planet Fitness in December 2020. (Doc. 1-1.) Magistrate Judge Willett was drawn to conduct the settlement conference, which was scheduled for January 12, 2022. (Docs. 17, 31.) Judge Willett ordered both parties to submit by email a “Confidential Settlement Statement” by January 4, 2022. (Doc. 31 at 2.) Defendant timely submitted the statement; Mr. Fuentes did not. Therefore, Judge Willett vacated the settlement conference and referred this case back to the Court “for consideration of the imposition of sanctions deemed appropriate, if any, against Plaintiff for Plaintiff's failure to” submit the Confidential Settlement Statement as ordered. (Doc. 50.)
Mr. Fuentes has a history of dallying. He slow-walked opposing counsel in scheduling his own deposition, and at the deposition, he withheld responses to relevant questions, a stonewalling this Court ultimately had to settle after-hours and over the telephone.
After declining several scheduling suggestions from opposing counsel, Mr. Fuentes suggested that his deposition take place on Thanksgiving Day, a holiday for many people-including court reporters who would record any deposition that took place.
The Court does not deem sanctions appropriate in this instance alone. But Mr. Fuentes must participate in this action-which he brought-as ordered. Therefore, IT IS ORDERED referring this matter back to Magistrate Judge Willett for a settlement conference. Plaintiff shall comply with Magistrate Judge Willett's order setting the settlement conference, including timely submitting any required Confidential Settlement Statement.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that if Plaintiff fails to participate in the settlement conference, including timely submitting any required Confidential Settlement Statement, the Court will impose sanctions up to and including dismissal of this case.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Plaintiff's Motion to Vacate Sanctions and to Reschedule the Settlement Conference (Doc. 51) is DENIED AS MOOT pursuant to the Court's ruling in this order.