Micron Technology, Inc. v. Factory Mutual Insurance Company

Background

This discovery order addressed two disputes in Micron’s insurance case against Factory Mutual Insurance Company. Micron sought to depose Mike Mueller, a former Factory Mutual branch underwriting manager assigned to Micron’s account. Micron said Mueller had relevant testimony because he approved policy terms, provisions, renewals, and coverage extensions, and worked to preserve the relationship after an accident at Micron’s facility.

Micron had taken eight depositions. It sought leave to take three more depositions beyond the ten allowed without court permission or an agreement: Mark Romman, a claims manager; Darren Benson, Factory Mutual’s Head of Claims; and Gregory Buchholz, Factory Mutual’s last account engineer for Micron and a participant in its Nitrogen Purifier Task Force.

The NDA dispute

Factory Mutual argued that Mueller’s testimony would be cumulative and that a nondisclosure agreement between Mueller and Factory Mutual prevented him from providing the requested testimony.

The court explained that a nondisclosure agreement generally cannot be used to shield information from discovery. Factory Mutual did not identify a case holding that such an agreement prevents an individual from giving relevant testimony. The court therefore ruled that the agreement did not bar Mueller’s deposition. It noted that his testimony could be designated confidential or attorneys’ eyes only under the existing protective order. Because Mueller was involved in approving Micron’s policy terms and handling the claim, the court found that he likely had relevant and non-cumulative information.

Additional depositions

Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 30(a)(2) generally limits each side to ten depositions without court permission or a stipulation. A party seeking more must make a particularized showing that the additional discovery is relevant and not unreasonably cumulative, duplicative, or burdensome.

The court granted Micron leave to depose all three requested witnesses. Factory Mutual did not contest Romman’s deposition. The court found that Benson likely had unique information because he had greater authority over claims decisions than the claims personnel Micron had already deposed. The court also found Buchholz’s post-loss risk-assessment work relevant because it could shed light on the scope of coverage under Micron’s policy. The court ordered Mueller to appear for deposition at a mutually agreed time and place and granted Micron leave to depose Romman, Benson, and Buchholz.