Grace v. Olympia School District

• Court: District Court, W.D. Washington
• Decided: March 15, 2021
• Docket: 3:16-cv-05273
• Status: Unknown

Opinion

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5 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 6 WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON AT TACOMA 7 W.H., et al., CASE NO. C16-5273 BHS 8 Plaintiffs, ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFFS’ 9 v. MOTION FOR PRIORITY TRIAL DATE 10 OLYMPIA SCHOOL DISTRICT, et al. 11 Defendants. 12

13 This matter comes before the Court on Plaintiffs’ motion for a priority trial date. 14 Dkt. 89. 15 Plaintiffs originally filed their complaint on April 8, 2016, and trial is currently set 16 for February 15, 2022. Plaintiffs argue that good cause exists for the Court to prioritize 17 Plaintiffs’ trial date due to Plaintiffs’ severe injuries, the delays in this case due to 18 appeals, and the length of time from the filing of their complaint to the current trial date. 19 The Court understands the frustration arising from the delay in trial but denies 20 Plaintiffs’ motion. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all civil trials are being conducted 21 virtually, and no criminal trial has occurred in the past year. Defendants do not appear to 22 consent to a virtual trial, and criminal matters will be prioritized once in-person trials 1 resume in the District. “A district court has inherent power to control the disposition of 2 the causes on its docket in a manner which will promote economy of time and effort for

3 itself, for counsel, and for litigants.” CMAX, Inc. v. Hall, 300 F.2d 265, 268 (9th Cir. 4 1962). The February 15, 2022 trial date remains the most efficient date for the Court. 5 Plaintiffs’ motion for priority trial date, Dkt. 89, is therefore DENIED. 6 IT IS SO ORDERED. 7 Dated this 15th day of March, 2021. A 8 9 BENJAMIN H. SETTLE 10 United States District Judge

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