Opinion
Civil 2:22-cv-02142-EJY
08-15-2023
ROBERT A. MAFARA, JR., Plaintiff, v. KILOLO KIJAKAZI, Acting Commissioner of Social Security, Defendant.
JASON M. FRIERSON United States Attorney JULIE A.K. CUMMINGS Special Assistant United States Attorney
JASON M. FRIERSON United States Attorney
JULIE A.K. CUMMINGS Special Assistant United States Attorney
UNOPPOSED MOTION FOR EXTENSION OF TIME, (FIRST REQUEST)
Defendant Kilolo Kijakazi, Acting Commissioner of Social Security (Defendant) respectfully requests that the Court extend the time for Defendant to respond to Plaintiff's Motion for Reversal and/or Remand (Dkt. No. 13, filed on July 15, 2023), currently due on August 14, 2023, by 45 days, through and including September 28, 2023.
I make this request in good faith and for good cause. Up front, I regret that I intended to file this motion prior to the date the brief was due for filing, which was yesterday, August 14, 2023. However, I work in downtown Honolulu, Hawai‘i, and have been without electric power going on two days now, exacerbated with the electric company's slow response time due to crews diverted to the neighbor island of Maui in the wake of recent fires. I have since found nearby office space today, August 15, 2023, and I sincerely apologize for the late filing of this motion.
My office, the Office of the General Counsel's (OGC) Office of Program Litigation, Office 7, is responsible for defending the Commissioner in this matter and all other similar matters throughout the Ninth Circuit. My office in experiencing an unanticipated spike in cases, exacerbated by several long-term leaves of absence. As such, this case and multiple other cases have been reassigned to me. Several such cases require imminent responses.
The extension is required to allow me time to review the record in this case and respond appropriately to Plaintiff's brief. Broadly, in my role of attorney at the OGC's Office 7, I am currently assigned 41 cases at various stages of litigation. Additionally, I have other nonlitigation work matters assigned to me. Despite my diligence, I have been unable to complete the review of this case, and the drafting of the brief, due to having multiple court filing dates within a compressed period. Specifically, I have a cluster of six district court briefs, including this one, all due for filing within a two-week period, an untenable schedule. While I have been diligently working to timely complete this and my other briefs, I find myself unable to properly represent the Commissioner within such a compressed timeline. I contacted counsel for Plaintiff, who said he has no objection to this motion to extend time.
For these reasons, I respectfully request that the Court grant this motion for an extension of 45 days for Defendant to respond to Plaintiff's Opening Brief, making Defendant's new brief due date September 28, 2023.
ORDER
IT IS SO ORDERED.