Opinion
CIVIL 1:22-cv-00262-MR
02-05-2024
SHANTI WINES, LLC and RAJIV SHARMA, Plaintiffs, v. SHANTI ELIXIRS, LLC and SHANTI VOLPE, Defendants.
ORDER
Martin Reidinger Chief United States District Judge
THIS MATTER is before the Court on the Plaintiffs' Motion to Extend Time for Plaintiffs to Depose Shanti Volpe and Shanti Elixirs, LLC [Doc. 24]; the Defendants' Motion to Continue Discovery, Mediation and Dispositive Motion Dates [Doc. 25]; and the Defendants' Motion to Compel [Doc. 26]. Extension of Time [Doc. 7].
This matter is currently set for trial during the September 3, 2024 mixed trial term. A Pretrial Order and Case Management Plan entered in May 2023 set a discovery deadline of February 1, 2024, a mediation deadline of February 15, 2024, and a dispositive motions deadline of March 1, 2024. [Doc. 18].
On January 30, the Plaintiffs filed their present motion, seeking an extension of time, until February 12, 2024, to depose the Defendants. [Doc. 24]. On February 1, 2024, the Defendants filed a motion seeking an extension of the discovery, mediation, and dispositive motions deadline of thirty (30) days. [Doc. 25]. Upon review of the parties' motions, and for cause shown, the Court will grant a 30-day extension of the discovery, mediation, and dispositive motions deadline. Absent a showing of extraordinary circumstances, further extensions of these deadlines will not be permitted. Further, the trial date of this matter will remain unaffected by these extensions.
The Defendants also move the Court to compel the Plaintiffs to provide more complete initial disclosures as well as responses to discovery previously propounded. [Doc. 26]. The Defendants, however, offer no explanation as to why they waited until the last day of the discovery period to file such a motion regarding initial disclosures that were made in May 2023. [See Doc. 26-1]. Further, they do not submit copies of the discovery requests propounded to the Plaintiffs or identify when such requests were propounded. Finally, and most significantly, the Defendants fail to indicate that they conferred or attempted to confer in good faith with opposing counsel prior to filing the motion. See LCvR 7.1(b). For all of these reasons, the Court denies the Defendants' Motion to Compel.
IT IS, THEREFORE, ORDERED that:
(1) The Plaintiffs' Motion to Extend Time for Plaintiffs to Depose Shanti Volpe and Shanti Elixirs, LLC [Doc. 24] is DENIED AS MOOT;
(2) The Defendants' Motion to Continue Discovery, Mediation and Dispositive Motion Dates [Doc. 25] is GRANTED, and the discovery, mediation and dispositive motion deadlines are extended as follows:
Discovery March 4, 2024
Mediation March 18, 2024
Dispositive Motions April 1, 2024
(3) The Defendants' Motion to Compel [Doc. 26] is DENIED.
IT IS SO ORDERED.