Garvey v. National Grange Mutual Insurance

167 F.R.D. 391, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 4262, 1996 WL 162347
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedApril 5, 1996
DocketCivil Action No. 95-0019
StatusPublished
Cited by22 cases

This text of 167 F.R.D. 391 (Garvey v. National Grange Mutual Insurance) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Garvey v. National Grange Mutual Insurance, 167 F.R.D. 391, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 4262, 1996 WL 162347 (E.D. Pa. 1996).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

HUTTON, District Judge.

Presently before the Court are the defendant’s Joint Motion for Reconsideration and for Protective Order, the plaintiffs response thereto, and supplemental briefs by both the defendant and plaintiff.

I. BACKGROUND

Plaintiff, Joseph Garvey (“Garvey”), was the owner of a deli and catering business called Creative Cuisine in Feasterville, Pennsylvania. The property was insured by a policy issued by defendant National Grange Mutual Insurance Company (“National Grange”). On June 29,1993, a fire destroyed the contents of the business. After an investigation, defendant denied coverage of plaintiffs claim.

Plaintiff then instituted this action.1 By Order dated March 15, 1995, this Court dismissed three counts of plaintiffs complaint, leaving remaining claims for breach of contract, bad faith, and deceit. Defendant then filed its answer with affirmative defenses and counterclaims. The three counterclaims are: breach of duty of good faith and fair dealing (Count I); fraud and deceit (Count II); and violation of the Insurance Fraud Act (Count III). By Order dated August 1, 1995, this Court denied the plaintiffs motion to dismiss or strike all three counts of the counterclaim.

During the discovery period in this matter, the parties could not resolve a dispute regarding documents in the defendant’s possession. The plaintiff had requested that the defendant produce all of the documents in its underwriting file, claims file and all insurance manuals pertaining to in-house underwriting and claims adjustment procedures. The defendant apparently produced most of the requested documents, but withheld certain documents that it claimed were not discoverable. Subsequently, the plaintiff filed a [393]*393motion for an order compelling the defendant to produce the remaining documents and the defendant filed a motion for an order protecting same. On October 10, 1995, this Court entered an Order that granted the plaintiffs motion to compel. The defendant’s motion for a protective order was denied with leave to renew in light of the fact that the defendant had not filed the proper documentation — i.e., a “privilege log” — to support its motion. Accordingly, the defendant has now renewed its motion for a protective order.

II. DISCUSSION

Pursuant to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a party is entitled to “obtain discovery regarding any matter, not privileged, which is relevant to the subject matter involved in the pending action____” Fed. R.Civ.P. 26(b)(1) (emphasis added). The defendant argues that the bulk of the documents that are the subject of this motion are in fact protected by either the work product doctrine and/or the attorney-client privilege. Furthermore, the defendant argues that its insurance manuals are not relevant to this action and are also protected from discovery as trade secrets.

In order to assist this Court in resolving the current discovery dispute, the defendant has, in its renewed motion, provided a detailed “privilege log” pertaining to the subject documents. Moreover, the defendant has provided copies of the documents to this Court to be reviewed in camera. For the following reasons, this Court now concludes that the subject documents are not discoverable and that the defendant’s motion shall be granted.

A. Work Product Doctrine

In the seminal case of Hickman v. Taylor, 329 U.S. 495, 67 S.Ct. 385, 91 L.Ed. 451 (1947), the United States Supreme Court developed what is now known as the work product doctrine. In Hickman, the Court created a limited immunity from discovery for the written statements, private memoranda, and personal recollections prepared by an adverse party’s counsel in anticipation of litigation. Currently, this doctrine has been codified in Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(b)(3) and has also been expanded by protecting the work product of a party, his agents and representatives, as well as that of the party’s attorney. Rule 26(b)(3) provides in pertinent part:

a party may obtain discovery of documents and tangible things otherwise discoverable under subdivision (b)(1) of this rule and prepared in anticipation of litigation or for trial by or for another party or by or for that other party’s representative ... only upon a showing that the party seeking discovery has substantial need of the materials in the preparation of the party’s case and that the party is unable without undue hardship to obtain the substantial equivalent of the materials by other means. In ordering discovery of such materials when the required showing has been made, the court shall protect against disclosure of the mental impressions, conclusions, opinions, or legal theories of an attorney or other representative of a party concerning the litigation.

Fed.R.Civ.P. 26(b)(3) (emphasis added).

The defendant claims that most of the documents in question are protected under Rule 26(b)(3) because they were prepared by it in anticipation of litigation. The plaintiff, however, argues that these documents were not produced in anticipation of litigation. In particular, the plaintiff points to the fact that the defendant did not deny his claim for loss until October 20,1994, approximately sixteen months after the loss. The plaintiff also contends that even if some or all of the documents should be afforded work product protection, disclosure would still be required under the compelling need exception to Rule 26(b)(3).

1. Anticipation of Litigation

The general rule for determining whether a document was prepared in anticipation of litigation is whether the document can fairly be said to have been prepared or obtained because of the prospect of litigation. In re Grand Jury Proceedings, 604 F.2d 798, 803 (3d Cir.1979) (quoting 8 Wright & Miller, Federal Practice and Procedure § 2024 at 198 (1970)). Thus, in a fairly recent decision [394]*394involving a claim for work product protection, the Third Circuit explained that

[o]nly by looking to the state of mind of the party preparing the document or, as here, the party ordering preparation of the document, can we determine whether this test has been satisfied. Thus, that person’s “unilateral belief’ that litigation will result is the initial focus of the inquiry into whether the report was prepared “in anticipation of litigation.” The rule is limited, however, by the requirement that the preparer’s anticipation of litigation be objectively reasonable.

Martin v. Bally’s Park Place Hotel & Casino, 983 F.2d 1252, 1260 (3d Cir.1993).

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167 F.R.D. 391, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 4262, 1996 WL 162347, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/garvey-v-national-grange-mutual-insurance-paed-1996.