Gary Prewitt, II v. Hamline Univ.

CourtCourt of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
DecidedMarch 22, 2019
Docket18-5789
StatusUnpublished

This text of Gary Prewitt, II v. Hamline Univ. (Gary Prewitt, II v. Hamline Univ.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Gary Prewitt, II v. Hamline Univ., (6th Cir. 2019).

Opinion

NOT RECOMMENDED FOR PUBLICATION File Name: 19a0141n.06

No. 18-5789

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SIXTH CIRCUIT FILED Mar 22, 2019 GARY G. PREWITT, II, ) DEBORAH S. HUNT, Clerk ) Plaintiff-Appellant, ) ) ON APPEAL FROM THE v. ) UNITED STATES DISTRICT ) COURT FOR THE MIDDLE HAMLINE UNIVERSITY, ) DISTRICT OF TENNESSEE ) Defendant-Appellee. ) )

Before: SUTTON, WHITE, and DONALD, Circuit Judges.

HELENE N. WHITE, Circuit Judge.

In this action alleging race and sex discrimination in education, Plaintiff-Appellant Gary

G. Prewitt, II, challenges (1) the district court’s decision to allow Defendant-Appellee Hamline

University to file a motion for summary judgment after the deadline set in the case-management

order, and (2) the district court’s denial of Prewitt’s Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56(d) request

to postpone ruling on Hamline’s motion for summary judgment until Prewitt could take additional

discovery. Because the district court did not abuse its discretion with respect to either decision,

we affirm.

I.

A.

From September 2009 to February 2014, Prewitt was enrolled as an online graduate student

at Hamline’s School of Education. In November 2014, Hamline locked Prewitt out of its online No. 18-5789, Prewitt v. Hamline Univ.

student computer system before Prewitt could complete the coursework required to obtain his

degree. Prewitt filed this action against Hamline, asserting, among other claims, that Hamline

unlawfully discriminated against him on the basis of his race in violation of Title VI of the Civil

Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000(d), and on the basis of his sex in violation of Title IX of the

Education Amendments of 1972, 20 U.S.C. § 1681(a). Hamline filed a motion to dismiss, and the

district court granted the motion as to all claims except for Prewitt’s race- and sex-discrimination

claims arising out of Hamline locking him out of the online system. Prewitt has not challenged

that decision.

B.

On April 20, 2017, the district court entered a case-management order requiring the parties

to complete written discovery by September 15, 2017, complete fact depositions by September 29,

2017, and file dispositive motions by February 1, 2018.

On September 7, 2017, Prewitt filed a discovery statement complaining that Hamline had

failed to timely serve responses to his requests for production and refused to designate a

representative to be deposed under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 30(b)(6).1 That same day,

Hamline complained to the district court that, among other things, Prewitt’s discovery responses

were deficient, Prewitt refused to submit to a deposition, and Prewitt improperly noticed the Rule

30(b)(6) deposition to be taken in Nashville, Tennessee, rather than St. Paul, Minnesota, Hamline’s

principal place of business.

On September 14, 2017, the magistrate judge held a telephone conference to discuss the

discovery disputes, and on the same day entered an order requiring Hamline to designate its Rule

30(b)(6) witnesses by September 20, 2017, Prewitt to inform Hamline by September 20, 2017,

1 Rule 30(b)(6) allows a party to depose an organization on particular matters through the testimony of one or more persons designated to speak on the organization’s behalf. 2 No. 18-5789, Prewitt v. Hamline Univ.

whether he intended to take the Rule 30(b)(6) deposition in person, and the parties to submit

supplemental discovery responses by September 29, 2017. The magistrate judge ordered that the

Rule 30(b)(6) deposition, if held in person, had to be conducted in St. Paul or Minneapolis,

Minnesota. Hamline designated Rule 30(b)(6) representatives on September 20, 2017, and served

supplemental discovery responses on September 29, 2017.

C.

The parties still had discovery disputes, so both filed motions to compel on October 6,

2017. Hamline asked the court to order Prewitt to provide discovery on his alleged damages and

submit to a deposition. Prewitt complained that Hamline failed to provide responsive information

to interrogatories and requests seeking, as relevant here, information on (1) the demographics of

students who obtained degrees from Hamline, (2) prior discrimination complaints against Hamline,

(3) Prewitt’s full student file, (4) Hamline’s financial aid policies, (5) any prior legal action against

Hamline, and (6) any meetings discussing Prewitt. Prewitt also complained that Hamline produced

over 1,100 pages of discovery but failed to disclose the Bates-number ranges associated with

certain interrogatories and discovery requests. In response to Prewitt’s motion, Hamline

supplemented its discovery again on October 13, 2017. In the supplemental production, Hamline

(1) provided Bates-number ranges for the document requests identified by Prewitt in the motion

to compel and (2) produced its financial aid policies and Prewitt’s financial aid statement. Hamline

maintained that it provided the appropriate information on other student discrimination complaints

and student demographics.

On January 3, 2018, the magistrate judge issued an order on the motions to compel. The

magistrate judge concluded that Hamline’s supplemental production mooted many of the issues

Prewitt raised in the motion to compel. As to Prewitt’s remaining objections to the discovery

3 No. 18-5789, Prewitt v. Hamline Univ.

responses, the magistrate judge concluded that those objections were vague and that Prewitt failed

to articulate the bases for his objections. The magistrate judge required Prewitt to produce all

responsive documents and evidence concerning his damages within seven days. The magistrate

judge also granted Hamline’s request to compel Prewitt’s deposition, requiring Hamline to propose

dates and times for the deposition within seven days and for Prewitt to respond within twenty-four

hours. The magistrate judge extended the discovery deadlines in the case-management order to

allow Prewitt to provide discovery responses and Hamline to take his deposition.

D.

On January 12, 2018, Prewitt sought review of the magistrate judge’s January 3, 2018,

order. Prewitt argued that Hamline’s supplemental discovery did not moot his requests because

(1) Hamline did not provide Bates-number ranges applicable to certain requests, (2) Hamline

provided the same Bates-number range for several requests, (3) Hamline provided demographic

information and discrimination complaints only for Hamline’s School of Education, and (4)

Hamline did not provide information fully responsive to Prewitt’s requests for information on

meetings discussing Prewitt. Prewitt also complained that he was unable to take Hamline’s Rule

30(b)(6) deposition.

On January 17, 2018, Hamline filed a motion for sanctions and to amend the case-

management order. Hamline sought sanctions on the basis that Prewitt failed to comply with the

court’s order to provide full discovery concerning his damages. Hamline asked the district court

to extend the deadline to file a dipositive motion beyond February 1, 2018, so that it could obtain

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