Lhotan v. Cahill

Background

The parties filed a joint letter concerning two discovery disputes. Joseph F. Lhotan had noticed the deposition of Dana LaPorta, but LaPorta and her counsel did not appear. The defendants stated that they had discontinued their third-party action against LaPorta, so she was no longer a party. Lhotan also requested the deposition of Danny Marra, a manager of Elite Limousine Service. Lhotan relied on testimony that Marra had been discussed during Michael J. Cahill’s deposition, had spoken with Cahill after the accident, and had met with Cahill at the Elite office after the accident.

The defendants objected to Marra’s deposition until their motion under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6) was resolved. They argued that, without allegations concerning negligent supervision, training, retention, or similar claims, there was no basis or need to depose Marra.

Court’s Rulings

As to LaPorta, the court explained that Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 45, which governs subpoenas to nonparties, applied rather than Rule 30. The court did not order LaPorta to appear at that point. It stated that Lhotan must first serve a valid Rule 45 subpoena. If LaPorta then failed to respond or appear, Lhotan could seek court intervention.

The court granted Lhotan’s request to order Marra’s deposition. It found that Lhotan had provided a valid reason for the deposition because Marra appeared to have knowledge about the accident and had met with Cahill afterward. The court concluded that Marra’s testimony could be relevant to Lhotan’s negligence claim against Cahill, not only to claims involving Elite’s alleged negligent supervision, training, or retention. Marra was directed to appear at a date and time the parties would mutually agree upon.

Discovery Extension and Counsel Conduct

Discovery had been scheduled to expire on March 15, 2024. The court extended discovery only to complete the Marra and LaPorta depositions and to serve post-deposition discovery requests related to those depositions within one week after each deposition. The court allowed no other discovery and stated that it would grant no further discovery extensions. The parties were directed to write to Judge Román to request an adjournment of the April 12, 2024, Case Management Conference. Lhotan was also directed to provide the court by April 30, 2024, with a status update concerning both depositions, including whether LaPorta had been subpoenaed and whether scheduling problems had arisen.

Judge Victoria Reznik criticized both lawyers’ uncivil and belligerent conduct during an adjourned telephonic status conference. The court warned that similar conduct in the future, whether during a court proceeding or in writing, would result in sanctions. The clerk was directed to terminate the pending letter motion at ECF No. 49.