Canton v. U.S. Foods, Inc.

District Court, N.D. California·Decided June 16, 2023·No. 3:22-cv-04226·Unknown

Opinion

1 2 3 6 7 BRIAN CANTON, Case No. 22-cv-04226-TLT (LJC)

8 Plaintiff, ORDER RE: PARTIES’ JOINT 9 v. STATEMENT OF DISCOVERY DISPUTE Re: ECF No. 35 Defendant. 11

12 13 This case involves employment discrimination, retaliation, and constructive discharge 14 claims. Before the Court is the parties’ Joint Statement of Discovery Dispute Regarding 15 Defendant U.S. Foods, Inc.’s (US Foods) Subpoenas for Plaintiff Brian Canton’s Medical Records 16 (Joint Discovery Statement). ECF No. 35. The Court construes the parties’ discovery dispute as a 17 motion by Plaintiff Mr. Canton to quash US Food’s subpoenas under Federal Rule of Civil 18 Procedure 45(d)(3)(A). Having read the parties’ submissions and carefully considered their 19 arguments and the relevant legal authority, including that presented at the Court’s hearing on the 20 dispute, for the reasons explained below, the Court GRANTS IN PART and DENIES IN PART 21 Mr. Canton’s motion to quash. The Court finds that US Foods is entitled to all medical records 22 from Mr. Canton’s therapist, Damien Terronez, LCSW, People Assisting the Homeless (PATH) 23 (an entity affiliated with Mr. Terronez), and Mr. Canton’s podiatrist, Jack Harvey, DPM. 24 However, US Foods’ subpoena for medical records to Mr. Canton’s general practitioner, Michael 25 Alper, M.D. is overbroad and must be narrowly tailored to seek only the relevant, non-protected 26 information at issue in this case. 1 employment discrimination, retaliation, and constructive discharge under 42 U.S.C. § 1981 and 2 the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA). First Amended Complaint (FAC) ¶¶ 3 6-7, ECF No. 21. Mr. Canton is a Black man who was employed with US Foods in Livermore, 4 California for 18 years. Id. ¶ 2. Mr. Canton alleges that, during his tenure at US Foods, the 5 company had a pattern and practice of promoting less qualified White employees over its Black 6 employees. Id. Mr. Canton states that he complained to upper management and human resources 7 on numerous occasions, but US Foods failed to act, and instead, retaliated against him by not 8 selecting him for a warehouse manager position. Id. ¶ 3. Mr. Canton further alleges that he was 9 constructively terminated on April 20, 2022. Id. ¶ 5. 10 Mr. Canton’s First Amended Complaint alleges that US Food’s conduct caused him 11 emotional distress, for which he is seeking damages. Id. ¶¶ 4, 57, 75, 84, 93. Mr. Canton went on 12 stress-related disability leave from December 20, 2021, until May 1, 2022, which he alleges was 13 due to stress caused by US Food’s discriminatory treatment against him. Id. ¶ 51. According to 14 Mr. Canton, he suffered from depression, anxiety, sense of worthlessness, and helplessness. Id. ¶ 15 57. Mr. Canton is also seeking economic damages and lost wages because of the allegedly 16 wrongful termination. Id. 17 On March 10, 2023, US Foods served subpoenas seeking medical records from Mr. 18 Canton’s care providers: Mr. Terronez, Dr. Harvey, and Dr. Alper. ECF No. 35-1 at 2-22.1 US 19 Foods’ subpoenas requested all medical records and documents pertaining to Mr. Canton’s 20 treatment or consultation, including his entire medical chart and file(s), during the period from 21 January 1, 2018, to the present. Id. Mr. Canton’s counsel sent an email to US Foods objecting to 22 the scope of the subpoenas on March 14, 2023. ECF No. 40-1 at 50. The parties met and 23 conferred, and thereafter, US Foods served an amended subpoena to Mr. Terronez and PATH on 24 March 16, 2023, narrowing the temporal scope of the subpoena from January 1, 2019, to the 25 present. ECF No. 35-1 at 24-32. 26 Despite continued negotiations, the parties did not come to a resolution, and Mr. Canton’s 27 1 counsel sent notice of objections to his medical providers on March 17, 2023, instructing them to 2 withhold the records until a court resolved the dispute. Id. at 82-83. US Foods sent its own letters 3 to the medical providers on March 23, 2023, informing them that “should [they] refuse to produce 4 documents pursuant to the subpoena, we will pursue any and all legal remedies available to us.” 5 Id. at 34-35. 6 The parties filed their Joint Discovery Statement on March 24, 2023, where Mr. Canton’s 7 counsel indicated that he intended to file a motion to quash US Foods’ subpoenas. ECF No. 35. 8 In the meantime, on March 27, 2023, the Court granted the parties’ stipulated protective order in 9 the case. ECF No. 36. 10 On April 13, 2023, the Court issued an order directing the parties to submit supplemental 11 briefing regarding the nature and type of medical records maintained by each of the care providers, 12 and whether Mr. Canton had waived his privacy rights as to his medical records by putting their 13 contents “at issue” in the case. ECF No. 39. Both Mr. Canton and US Foods submitted their 14 supplemental briefs on April 20, 2023. ECF Nos. 40, 41. Both parties also indicated in their 15 briefing that US Foods has already received all records from all three medical providers, except 16 for an intake form dated January 15, 2022, related to Mr. Terronez’s treatment of Mr. Canton, 17 which Mr. Canton had previously produced to US Foods with redactions.2 ECF Nos. 40 at 2; 41 at 18 1. The Court held a hearing on April 25, 2023. ECF No. 42. Per the Court’s instructions, Mr. 19 Canton’s counsel lodged an unredacted copy of the intake form for in camera review. See id. 21 “Parties may obtain discovery regarding any nonprivileged matter that is relevant to any 22 party’s claim or defense and proportional to the needs of the case,” considering, among other 23 things, “the importance of the discovery in resolving the issues.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(b)(1). 24 However, the Court must modify or quash a subpoena seeking production of documents which 25 “requires disclosure of privileged or other protected matter, if no exception or waiver applies.” 26 Fed. R. Civ. P. 45(d)(3)(A)(iii) (emphasis added). 27 1 Although a party generally has privacy rights as to their own medical records, those rights 2 may be waived “if the party puts their contents at issue in a case.” Anderson v. Clawson, No. C 3 13-0307 LHK (PR), 2014 WL 3725856, at *2 (N.D. Cal. July 25, 2014); see also E.E.O.C. v. 4 Serramonte, 237 F.R.D. 220, 224 (N.D. Cal. 2006) (“The test of whether [one party] should obtain 5 access to [another party’s] medical records is not relevance—the records may be highly relevant— 6 but the test is whether the privilege has been waived by putting the privileged information at 7 issue.”) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). However, any waiver is “limited to the 8 private information that is relevant to the lawsuit.” Anderson, 2014 WL 3725856, at *2 (quoting 9 Enwere v. Terman Assocs., L.P., No. C 07-1239 JF PVT, 2008 WL 5146617, at *2 (N.D. Cal. 10 Dec. 4, 2008)). 11 A party does not waive their right of privacy as to medical records “by asserting… a 12 garden-variety claim of emotional distress.” E.E.O.C., 237 F.R.D. at 224. But there is 13 undoubtedly a waiver if the party brings claims concerning physical or mental health injuries and 14 then seeks damages for those injuries. Ali v. eBay, Inc., No. 17CV06589BLFSVK, 2018 WL 15 3368389, at *1 (N.D. Cal. July 10, 2018). “In deciding whether to quash the subpoena, the Court 16 must balance the need for the particular information against the privacy right asserted.” Knoll, 17 Inc. v. Moderno, Inc., No. C 12-80193-MISC SI, 2012 WL 4466543, at *2 (N.D. Cal. Sept. 26, 18 2012). 20 Mr.

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