Moreno Rivera v. DHL Global Forwarding

272 F.R.D. 50, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3823, 2011 WL 135757
CourtDistrict Court, D. Puerto Rico
DecidedJanuary 14, 2011
DocketCivil No. 09-1489 (FAB) (JA)
StatusPublished
Cited by15 cases

This text of 272 F.R.D. 50 (Moreno Rivera v. DHL Global Forwarding) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Puerto Rico primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Moreno Rivera v. DHL Global Forwarding, 272 F.R.D. 50, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3823, 2011 WL 135757 (prd 2011).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

JUSTO ARENAS, United States Chief Magistrate Judge.

This matter is before me on plaintiff Catherine Moreno Rivera’s motion to compel DHL Global Forwarding (“DHL”) to respond to interrogatories and request for production of documents. (Docket No. 22.) Plaintiff alleges that DHL has engaged in evasiveness in its response to document requests, and the inappropriate use of the attorney-client privilege. (Id. at 4.) The plaintiff amended her motion on June 24, 2010. (Docket No. 23.) In opposing the motion, DHL alleges a different factual synopsis. According to the defendant, in its response letter, it “expressly stated to plaintiffs counsel that if they had any questions about this matter,” plaintiff could contact the defendant. (Docket No. 27, at 2, ¶ 3.) The plaintiff allegedly chose not to do so. (Id.) Therefore, the defendant moved to strike plaintiffs motion on the basis of inadequate exhaustion of extrajudicial remedies “before requesting the Court’s intervention pursuant to Rule 37(a)____” (Id. at 3, ¶ 7.) DHL subsequently filed a motion contesting each request individually on July 19, 2010. (Docket No. 28.) There, the defendant argues that plaintiff failed to satisfy her burden under Rule 26(b), requiring a demonstration of the relevance of requested discovery. (Id. at 4.) For the following reasons, the plaintiffs motion is GRANTED in part and DENIED in part.

BACKGROUND

Plaintiff Catherine Moreno Rivera brings this action against her former employer DHL Global Forwarding (“DHL”), alleging discriminatory retaliation for testifying in a sexual harassment case in support of another DHL employee. (Docket No. 7, at 1, ¶ 1.1.) The plaintiff also alleges that DHL subjected her to a hostile work environment. (Id. at 3, ¶ 4.4.) Plaintiff seeks remedies under Puerto Rico Law 80, the Americans with Disabilities Act and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. (Id. at 1-2.) DHL filed its answer on October 13, 2009. (Docket No. 9.) DHL denies that it discriminated or retaliated against plaintiff. (Id. at 6.) Conversely, DHL argues that the plaintiffs termination resulted from the defendant’s interest in conducting its business in an “orderly, efficient and diligent manner.” (Id. at 6-7, ¶ 19.) The parties filed their “Joint Case Management Memorandum” on January 13, 2010. (Docket No. 17.)

The plaintiff served her initial discovery requests on February 19, 2010. (Docket Nos. 22-1, 22-2.) DHL partially responded to these requests on May 10, 2010. (Docket Nos. 22-3, 22-4.) Specifically, the defendant refused to answer interrogatories 5, 6, 7, 9, 10 and 19; it also refused document productions 2, 4, 8, 9,15,16,17,19 and 20. (Docket No. 28.) Plaintiff addressed each of these instances in a letter dated May 17, 2010. (Docket No. 22-5.) The defendant responded by letter on May 26, 2010. (Docket No. 22-6.) Plaintiff filed the present motion on June 23, 2010. (Docket No. 22.)

DISCUSSION

Pursuant to the Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 34(a)(1), “[a] party may serve on any other party a request within the scope of Rule 26(b): (1) to produce and permit the requesting party ... to inspect [or] copy ... any designated documents____” Fed. R.Civ.P. 34(a)(1)(A). “The party to whom the request is directed must respond in writing within 30 days after being served. A shorter or longer time may be stipulated to under Rule 29 or be ordered by the court.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 34(b)(2)(A). Rule 37(a)(3)(B) allows “[a] party seeking discovery [to] move for an order compelling ... production____ This motion may be made if ...; a party fails to respond to that inspection will be permitted ... as requested under Rule 34.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 37(a)(3)(B)(iv).

Under Local Rule 7(b), “[u]nless within fourteen (14) days after the service of a motion the opposing party files a written objection to the motion, ... the opposing party shall be deemed to have waived their objection.” Local Rules of the U.S. Dist. Court for the Dist. of P.R. Rule 7(b) (2009).

[54]*54Motion to Compel

As stated, the plaintiff moves this court to compel responses to the requested interrogatories and the request for production of documents. (Docket No. 22.) DHL rejected these requests on a variety of grounds. Objections fall into three categories, which I will discuss in turn: (1) “impermissibly over-broad,” vague and/or irrelevant; (2) unrelated party; and (8) protected by attorney-client privilege or work-product doctrine. (Docket No. 28, at 5-12.) Plaintiff does not address these objections individually or substantively; rather, she cites the discovery maxim that due deference should be given to a plaintiffs discovery requests. (Docket No. 22, at 10.)

Discovery Standard

“Parties may obtain discovery regarding any nonprivileged matter that is relevant to any party’s claim or defense----” Fed. R.Civ.P. 26(b)(1). Prior to the 2000 amendments to the Federal Rules, discovery was open to any subject matter of the action. This evidences a desire to narrow the rules of discovery. However, the 2000 amendments did add the following: “For good cause, the court may order discovery of any matter relevant to the subject matter involved in the action.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 26(b)(1).

Thus, the current discovery framework can be considered a two-step system. Step one is attorney-managed discovery “relevant to any claim or defense of a party”; step two is a court-managed “discovery that can include information relevant to the subject matter of the action.” 8 The Late Charles Alan Wright, et al, Federal Practice and Procedure § 2008 (3d ed.). Therefore, when a party objects to discovery requests as being impermissibly overbroad, “the court would become involved to determine whether the discovery is relevant to the claims or defenses and, if not, whether good cause exists for authorizing it so long as it is relevant to the subject matter of the action.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 26 advisory committee’s note (2000), subdivision (b)(1).

The party seeking production of documents containing confidential information must make a showing that its “claim of need and relevance is not frivolous.” In re Bextra & Celebrex Mktg. Sales Practices & Prod. Liab. Litig., 249 F.R.D. 8, 12 (D.Mass.2008) (quoting Cusumano v. Microsoft Corp., 162 F.3d 708, 716 (1st Cir.1998)). The party objecting to document production must then demonstrate its basis for withholding the information. Id. Finally, “the Court must balance ‘the movant’s need for the information on one pan of the scales and ... the objector’s interest in confidentiality and the potential injury to the free flow of information that disclosure portends on the opposite pan;’ ” In re Bextra & Celebrex Mktg. Sales Practices and Prod. Liab. Litig., 249 F.R.D.

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272 F.R.D. 50, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3823, 2011 WL 135757, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/moreno-rivera-v-dhl-global-forwarding-prd-2011.