Bertrang v. Wisconsin Central, Ltd.

301 F.R.D. 364, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 119965, 2014 WL 4199710
CourtDistrict Court, D. Minnesota
DecidedAugust 22, 2014
DocketCiv. No. 14-0133 (SRN/JJG)
StatusPublished

This text of 301 F.R.D. 364 (Bertrang v. Wisconsin Central, Ltd.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Minnesota primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Bertrang v. Wisconsin Central, Ltd., 301 F.R.D. 364, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 119965, 2014 WL 4199710 (mnd 2014).

Opinion

ORDER

JEANNE J. GRAHAM, United States Magistrate Judge.

This matter is before the Court on Plaintiff Chad Bertrang’s Motion to Compel Rule [366]*36630(b)(6) Deposition (ECF No. 17). The Court took the matter under advisement after oral argument on August 20, 2014, at which David E. Sehlesinger appeared on behalf of Plaintiff and Joseph D. Weiner appeared on behalf of Defendant Wisconsin Central, Ltd.

I. Background

Plaintiff brought this action against Defendant for retaliation and discrimination under the Federal Railroad Safety Act (“FRSA”), 49 U.S.C. § 20109, alleging he was terminated from Defendant’s employment for reporting a workplace injury that occurred on July II, 2011. (Compl. ¶¶ 1, 9-10, 29, Jan. 1, 2014, ECF No. 1.) On July 2,2014, Plaintiff noticed Defendant of a Rule 30(b)(6) deposition of a corporate representative of Defendant and outlined eight topics of testimony. (Schlesinger Decl. Ex. 1, Aug. 1, 2014, ECF No. 21.) Defendant responded with a letter objecting to each of the topics stated in the notice of deposition (id. Ex. 2), and Plaintiff subsequently brought this Motion to Compel.

II. Discussion

The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure provide that “[pjarties may obtain discovery regarding any nonprivileged matter that is relevant to any party’s claim or defense.” Fed. R.Civ.P. 26(b)(1). Evidence is relevant when (1) “it has any tendency to make a fact more or less probable than it would be without the evidence” and (2) “the fact is of consequence in determining the action.” Fed.R.Evid. 401. Courts have construed the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure as authorizing broad discovery. Penford Corp. v. National Union Fire Ins. Co. of Pittsburgh, 265 F.R.D. 430, 432 (N.D.Iowa 2009). Upon a showing of “good cause, the court may order discovery of any matter relevant to the subject matter involved in the action.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 26(b)(1). “Relevant information need not be admissible at the trial if the discovery appears reasonably calculated to lead to the discovery of admissible evidence.” Id.

A. Topic One

Topic one of Plaintiffs notice seeks “[t]he number of injuries reported by employees of Defendant from January 1, 2008. For each injury reported, whether there was a formal investigation performed by Defendant, the findings of the investigation, any discipline that resulted from the investigation.” (Sehlesinger Decl. Ex. 1.) Defendant argues the topic is overbroad with respect to time and scope, is irrelevant, seeks private information of non-parties, and is better suited for non-testimonial discovery.

The information Plaintiff seeks is relevant to his claim, but a deposition is an inefficient means of obtaining it. Therefore, PlaintifPs Motion to Compel is granted in part as to the information requested in topic one but denied with respect to the form taken. Because the information Plaintiff seeks is better suited to an interrogatory response, the Court grants Plaintiff leave to propound an interrogatory requesting (1) the existence of any reported injury, (2) whether Defendant formally investigated the injury, and (3) whether any discipline resulted from the investigation. Moreover, Plaintiffs temporal scope is limited to injuries reported between July 11, 2009, and July 11, 2013.

B. Topic Two

In the second topic listed in his notice, Plaintiff seeks “[a]ll claims alleging violations of 49 U.S.C. § 20109 brought against Defendant from January 1, 2008[,] to the present and the results of those claims.” (Sehlesin-ger Decl. Ex. 1.) Defendant argues the request is overbroad because it is not limited to the engineering department — the department in which Plaintiff worked — and seeks information about § 20109 claims other than those relating to workplace injuries.

Information relating to § 20109 claims alleging Defendant disciplined an employee for reporting a workplace injury is clearly relevant to Plaintiffs claim. And Plaintiff alleges a company-wide practice of retaliation, not simply a practice in the engineering department. Although the Court is uncertain of the connection between different departments within Defendant’s overall company structure, Plaintiffs request for information about company-wide claims is not unduly burdensome. Therefore, with respect to topic two, Plaintiffs Motion is granted to the extent that Plaintiff may question Defendant’s designee about all claims against De[367]*367fendant alleging violations of § 20109 related to reporting a workplace injury made between July 11,2009, and July 11,2013.

C. Topic Three

In his third topic, Plaintiff requests “Defendant’s policies, practices, and procedures regarding employees filing injury reports from January 1, 2008[,] to the present.” (Sehlesinger Decl. Ex. 1.) Defendant counters that the information requested here is duplicative of other testimony.

Although Plaintiff has received deposition testimony from other witnesses on this issue, a Rule 30(b)(6) deposition is distinct from the depositions of those witnesses. In a Rule 30(b)(6) deposition, the corporate representative and the corporation are one and the same. See Sprint Commc’ns Co. v. Theglobe.com, Inc., 236 F.R.D. 524, 527 (D.Kan.2006). “The Rule 30(b)(6) designee does not give his personal opinion. Rather, he presents the corporation’s position on the topic. The designee testifies on behalf of the corporation and thus holds it accountable.” Id. (quotations and citations omitted). For this reason, Plaintiffs Motion with respect to topic three is granted to the extent that Plaintiff may question Defendant about its “policies, practices, and procedures regarding employees filing injury reports” from July 11, 2009, to July 11, 2013.

D. Topic Four

Plaintiffs fourth topic asks for “Defendant’s policies, practices, and procedures regarding investigating and determining the cause of injuries from January 1, 2008[,] to the present.” (Sehlesinger Decl. Ex. 1.) As it did with topic three, Defendant characterizes the information this topic seeks as duplica-tive.

Because the information Plaintiff seeks is relevant and because a Rule 30(b)(6) deposition of a corporate designee is distinct from the deposition of other witnesses, Plaintiffs Motion is granted in part with respect to topic four. Plaintiff may question Defendant about its “policies, practices and procedures regarding investigating and determining the cause of injuries” from July 11, 2009, to July 11, 2013.

E. Topic Five

Topic five of Plaintiffs notice seeks “Defendant’s policies, practices, and procedures regarding of [sic] reporting injuries to the Federal Railway Administration ...

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301 F.R.D. 364, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 119965, 2014 WL 4199710, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/bertrang-v-wisconsin-central-ltd-mnd-2014.