Opinion
Case No. C 09-03718 PJH.
February 22, 2010
KANTOR KANTOR, LLP, ALAN E. KASSAN, State Bar No. 113864, PETER S. SESSIONS, State Bar No. 193301, Northridge, California, Attorneys for Plaintiff Cynthia Sullivan.
SEDGWICK, DETERT, MORAN ARNOLD LLP, REBECCA A. HULL, State Bar No. 99802, San Francisco, California, Attorneys for Defendants, Metropolitan Life Insurance Company and Home Depot, Welfare Benefits Plan, incorrectly sued as, The Home Depot Long Term Disability Plan.
STIPULATION TO CONTINUE CASE MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE; [PROPOSED] ORDER
IT IS HEREBY STIPULATED AND AGREED by and between the parties, through their attorneys of record, that the case management conference in the above-captioned matter, currently scheduled for February 25, 2010 at 2:00 p.m., be continued to May 20, 2010 at 2:00 p.m., or to the nearest date and time convenient for the Court, for the following reasons:
1. In preparation for the initial case management conference, the parties first learned about, and discussed, their dispute regarding whether plaintiff had exhausted her administrative remedies in this ERISA matter by submitting an appeal to defendants.
2. At the initial case management conference, which took place on November 19, 2009, the Court discussed this dispute with counsel, and ruled as follows: "The court will allow the appeal to go forward. The case is stayed pending adjudication of the appeal. A further case management conference is set for 2/25/10 at 2:00 p.m. A joint case management conference statement shall be filed by 2/18/10."
3. Plaintiff's counsel represents that his office is, and has been, in the process of collecting supplemental information in support of Ms. Sullivan's appeal.
4. Plaintiff's counsel has been able to obtain information regarding Ms. Sullivan's award of Social Security benefits, which has already been forwarded to defense counsel.
5. However, much of the remaining supporting information consists of medical records, and obtaining those records has taken longer than originally expected due to delays in the responses of Ms. Sullivan's medical providers.
6. Plaintiff's counsel anticipates that his office will be able to complete its investigation and submit Ms. Sullivan's appeal to defendants within the next two weeks. However, defendants will require time to process this submission and render a decision on Ms. Sullivan's appeal.
7. Accordingly, the parties hereby stipulate that the case management conference, currently set for February 25, 2010 at 2:00 p.m., be continued to May 20, 2010 at 2:00 p.m., or to the nearest date and time convenient for the Court, in order to permit the parties adequate time to complete the administrative appeal process.
ORDER
PURSUANT TO STIPULATION, IT IS SO ORDERED. The case management conference in this matter is continued from February 25, 2010 at 2:00 p.m. to May 27, 2010 at 2:00 p.m. A joint case management conference statement shall be filed by May 20, 2010.