DCP Midstream, LP v. Anadarko Petroleum Corp.

2013 CO 36, 303 P.3d 1187, 2013 WL 3225846, 2013 Colo. LEXIS 445
CourtSupreme Court of Colorado
DecidedJune 24, 2013
Docket12S307
StatusPublished
Cited by31 cases

This text of 2013 CO 36 (DCP Midstream, LP v. Anadarko Petroleum Corp.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Colorado primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
DCP Midstream, LP v. Anadarko Petroleum Corp., 2013 CO 36, 303 P.3d 1187, 2013 WL 3225846, 2013 Colo. LEXIS 445 (Colo. 2013).

Opinions

CHIEF JUSTICE BENDER

delivered the Opinion of the Court.

{ 1 This original proceeding involves questions about the seope of discovery under Rule 26 of the Colorado Rules of Civil Procedure and the application of the attorney-client privilege to title opinions prevalent in the oil and gas industry.

T2 Plaintiff DCP Midstream, LP, the respondent in this court, sued Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, the petitioner, for breach of contract and other claims. DCP asserted eleven breach of contract claims but stated in its complaint that it anticipated adding additional breach of contract claims after conducting discovery. During discovery, DCP sent Anadarko fifty-eight requests for production seeking millions of pages of paper and electronic documents and many of Ana-darko's "title opinions"-attorney-authored opinions about the state of title to land or mineral interests. Anadarko refused to produce many of the requested documents. DCP then filed a motion to compel. In response, Anadarko argued that many of DCP's requests were not relevant to the eleven breach of contract claims pleaded and were thus outside the seope of discovery permitted by C.R.C.P. 26(b)(1). Anadarko also argued that the title opinions were privileged attorney-client communications.

13 Without holding a hearing, the trial court granted DCP's motion. The trial court did not address any of Anadarko's objections, nor did it provide any analysis under C.R.C.P. 26(b) in support of its conclusions. In a later written order, the trial court reasoned that DCP was entitled to discovery on any issue that is or may become relevant and ruled that Anadarko's title opinions were not privileged because they were based on public information. Following this order, Anadarko petitioned this court for relief under C.AR. 21.

4 This proceeding raises important questions about the seope of discovery and the extent to which trial courts must manage the discovery phase of a case to accomplish the overriding purpose of our civil rules-"the just, speedy, and inexpensive determination of every action." C.R.C.P. 1. The civil rules, and our cases interpreting them, reflect an evolving effort to require active judicial management of pretrial matters to curb discovery abuses, reduce delay, and decrease litigation costs. See C.R.C.P. 16 committee comment ("It is expected that trial judges will assertively lead the management of cases to ensure that justice is served.").

4 5 This principle of active judicial management is also reflected in C.R.C.P. 26(b), which defines the permissible seope of discovery in any given case. As amended in 2002, C.R.C.P. 26(b)(1) restricts the seope of discovery available as a matter of right to that relevant to the "claim or defense of any party." The trial court may allow broader discovery into the "subject matter" involved in the action for "good cause"-a standard that is "meant to be flexible" but is otherwise undefined. As it did before the 2002 amendments, C.R.C.P. 26(b)(2) imposes limits on the number of depositions, interrogatories, and requests for production, and these limits can also be modified for "good cause"-a standard that requires the trial court to consider the cost-benefit and proportionality factors listed in subsection (b)(2)(F).

T6 It is clear that the "claim or defense" category is intended to be narrower than the "subject matter" category, and broader discovery should be permitted only for good cause. It is also clear that the 2002 amendments are designed "to involve the court more actively in regulating the breadth of sweeping or contentious discovery." Thus, the amendments are intended to narrow the scope of permissible discovery available to parties as a matter of right and to require active judicial management when a party objects that the discovery sought exceeds that scope.

T7 The rule suggests that if a party objects to discovery because it is not relevant to a claim or defense, then the trial court must become involved. From the rule's plain language, it appears that the trial court need only make a simple determination as to whether the discovery sought is relevant to any party's "claim or defense" and, if not, whether good cause exists for permitting discovery into the "subject matter" of the case. [1191]*1191However, the rule does not explain the difference between discovery relevant to a "claim or defense" and discovery relevant to the "subject matter." The advisory committee's notes offer a practical approach. They state that "[when judicial intervention is invoked, the actual seope of discovery should be determined according to the reasonable needs of the action." We perceive no meaningful distinction between the result of this approach and the goal of the rule's "claim or defense" and "subject matter" categories, as both require active judicial management of discovery when disagreements about the scope of discovery arise. We prefer the practical approach offered by the advisory committee's notes because it avoids the possibility of additional litigation that the "claim or defense" and "subject matter" categories appear destined to invite.

T8 C.R.C.P. 26(b) requires trial courts to take an active role managing discovery when a scope objection is raised. When faced with a seope objection, the trial court must determine the appropriate scope of discovery in light of the reasonable needs of the case and tailor discovery to those needs. Because each case is unique and deserves unique treatment, the reasonable needs of the case will necessarily vary, depending on the subject matter and complexity of the case, the nature of the parties' claims or defenses, and the discovery necessary to resolve the dispute. To tailor discovery to the specific needs of the case, we find the cost-benefit and proportionality factors listed in C.R.C.P. 26(b)(2)(F) helpful. Like the 2002 amendments, these factors require active judicial management to control excessive discovery.

T9 Hence, we hold that, to resolve a dispute regarding the proper seope of discovery in a particular case, the trial court should, at a minimum, consider the cost-benefit and proportionality factors set forth in C.R.C.P. 26(b)(2)(F). When tailoring discovery, the factors relevant to a trial court's decision will vary depending on the cireumstances of the case, and trial courts always possess discretion to consider any or all of the factors listed-or any other pertinent factors-as the needs of the case require.

T10 After review of the trial court's order compelling discovery of voluminous doe-uments and extensive electronic information, we conclude that the trial court has not yet taken an active role managing discovery because it has not determined the appropriate seope of discovery in light of the reasonable needs of the case and has not attempted to tailor discovery to those needs. We also conclude that the trial court's analysis compelling production of Anadarko's title opinions is without legal support. Thus, we conclude that the trial court abused its discretion. We make the rule absolute and return the case to the trial court for proceedings consistent with this opinion.

I. Facts and Proceedings Below

1 11 The parties to this original proceeding are oil and gas companies that gather, transport, and process natural gas in the Watten-berg Gas Field in northeastern Colorado. Plaintiff DCP Midstream, LP is a natural gas transporter, meaning it transports natural gas from gas wells to processing plants where the gas is eventually sold.

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Bluebook (online)
2013 CO 36, 303 P.3d 1187, 2013 WL 3225846, 2013 Colo. LEXIS 445, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/dcp-midstream-lp-v-anadarko-petroleum-corp-colo-2013.