Opinion
Case No. 1:10-CV-01492- LJO-JLT
07-19-2012
U.S. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION, Plaintiff, DOUGLAS ABDON ET AL., Plaintiffs-In-Intervention, v. CENTRAL CALIFORNIA FOUNDATION FOR HEALTH d/b/a DELANO REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER ET AL., Defendants.
Anna Y. Park, SBN164242 Michael Farrell, SBN 266553 Peter F. Laura, SBN 116436 Rumduol Vuong, SBN 264392 U.S. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION Attorneys for Plaintiff U.S. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION
Anna Y. Park, SBN164242
Michael Farrell, SBN 266553
Peter F. Laura, SBN 116436
Rumduol Vuong, SBN 264392
U.S. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT
OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION
Attorneys for Plaintiff
U.S. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT
OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION
STIPULATION FOR EXTENSION
OF TIME TO CONTINUE THE
DUE DATE FOR LODGING THE
CONSENT DECREE
CONCLUDING THIS ACTION;
AND ORDER (Court revised text)
[FIRST REQUEST FOR
EXTENSION OF DUE DATE FOR
LODGING CONSENT DECREE]
Pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 6 and L.R. 144, the Parties in this action, Plaintiff United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Plaintiffs-in-Intervention Douglas Abdon et al., and Defendants Central California Foundation for Health d/b/a Delano Regional Medical Center and Delano Health Associates, hereby submit this stipulation for a forty-five (45) day extension of the current Court deadline for the Parties to lodge the Consent Decree concluding this action in its entirety. Specifically, the Parties seek an extension of the current deadline from July 23, 2012 to September 6, 2012. As explained herein, this stipulation is submitted for good cause. This is the Parties' first request for an extension of the deadline to submit the Consent Decree concluding this action.
As a result of the Parties' efforts during a formal mediation conference held on June 21, 2012, the Parties reached resolution regarding the claims for monetary relief in this action. That agreement was contingent upon agreement to all of the terms of a Consent Decree, including agreement regarding the claims for injunctive relief in the action. Pursuant to L.R. 160(a), the Parties immediately provided notice to the Court that they had reached a settlement in principle. (Docket No. 81) The Court then established a deadline of July 23, 2012 for the parties to file "the appropriate papers to ... conclude this action in its entirety." (Docket No. 82). In this case, all claims for relief will be resolved in their entirety by the lodging of a Consent Decree.
During the weeks following mediation, the Parties have been diligently working to resolve all of the outstanding issues of the Consent Decree and finalize that document. However, due to the complexity of the issues involved, the fact that there are three different Parties with distinct interests in this case, the large number of Claimants in this case, and the upcoming summer vacation schedules of various counsel involved, the Parties require additional time to complete negotiations regarding the terms of the Consent Decree.
The issues that are currently being negotiated are complex as they involve specific provisions for the implementation of company-wide employment policies and practices over a three-year time frame. Moreover, the fact that there are three separate Parties to the action, each with different legal teams representing well over 60 individuals with an interest in the outcome, has further complicated negotiations. In addition, certain counsel of record with settlement authority in this action have upcoming pre-planned vacations including Anna Park, Regional Attorney for the EEOC, who will be on a pre-paid vacation from August 12 to August 25, 2012, and Laboni Hoq, Litigation Director for APALC, who will be on a pre-paid vacation from July 23 to August 7, 2012. Although the Parties will be prepared to continue negotiations in their absence, these pre-scheduled plans may necessitate some additional time to finalize and execute the Consent Decree.
Based on the foregoing, the EEOC, the Plaintiffs-in-Intervention and Defendants request an extension of time of forty-five (45) days, through to September 6, 2012, to lodge the Consent Decree concluding this action in its entirety. The requested extension is made in good faith by all Parties and will not result in any undue delay or prejudice to any Party.
Respectfully submitted,
U.S. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT
OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION
By: ____________________________
Peter F. Laura
Attorneys for Plaintiff EEOC
ASIAN PACIFIC AMERICAN LEGAL
CENTER
By: ____________________________
Justin Ma
Attorneys for Plaintiff Intervenors
CLIFFORD & BROWN
By: ____________________________
Robert D. Harding
Attorneys for Defendants
ORDER
The parties seek to extend the July 23, 2012 deadline to file papers to conclude this action in its entirety. The parties' papers reflect that they have not maximized their time to date to complete settlement. In light of upcoming vacations of counsel, this Court GRANTS a one-time extension to September 14, 2012 to file papers to conclude this action in its entirety. This Court will grant a further extension only if necessary to prevent manifest injustice.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
Lawrence J. O'Neill
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE