Tex. Health Mgmt. LLC v. Healthspring Life & Health Ins. Co.

380 F. Supp. 3d 580
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Texas
DecidedMarch 29, 2019
DocketCivil Action No. 4:18-CV-448
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 380 F. Supp. 3d 580 (Tex. Health Mgmt. LLC v. Healthspring Life & Health Ins. Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Tex. Health Mgmt. LLC v. Healthspring Life & Health Ins. Co., 380 F. Supp. 3d 580 (E.D. Tex. 2019).

Opinion

AMOS L. MAZZANT, UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

Pending before the Court is Texas Health Management LLC's ("THM") Motion to Re-Urge THM's Motion to Vacate *583Arbitration Award (Dkt. #32); Motion for Leave to Amend Original Petition (Dkt. #44); and Motion for Leave to Join Additional Parties (Dkt. #46). Having considered the motions and the relevant pleadings, the Court finds that the motions should be denied.

BACKGROUND

The procedurally complex facts of this case provide a textbook example of why parties should inform the Court of related cases. The facts begin with an arbitration and end with the motion pending before the Court.

I. Arbitration

The Court previously summarized the facts of the parties' arbitration.

[Defendant HealthSpring Life & Health Insurance Company, Inc. "HealthSpring"] is a Texas corporation that offers "Medicare Advantage Plans." In May 2013, HealthSpring and [THM] entered into an agreement for THM to provide in-home medical services to HealthSpring's Medicare Advantage Members in Texas. In pertinent part, the agreement required THM to provide HealthSpring with completed 360 Comprehensive Assessments Forms ("360 Forms"), which contained important medical information regarding HealthSpring's Medicare Advantage Members.
On January 30, 2017, THM submitted a demand for arbitration ("Arbitration Demand"), which, among other things, sought fees allegedly owed to them for services THM provided to HealthSpring. Additionally, THM submitted an application for emergency measures of protection, which sought an equitable decree ordering HealthSpring to pay the invoices. The emergency arbitrator declined to award THM such emergency relief and referred the matter to a panel of three arbitrators (the "Tribunal") for further proceedings. On February 21, 2017, THM amended its original Arbitration Demand to include, in pertinent part, a claim under Section 2 of the Sherman Act.
During discovery, in connection with its Sherman Act claim, THM sought copies of certain contracts between HealthSpring and THM's competitors. On June 16, 2017, the Discovery Master and Chair of the Tribunal ordered HealthSpring to produce such contracts, but allowed HealthSpring the ability to redact "commercially sensitive terms." As such, HealthSpring produced such contracts in redacted form. On August 7, 2017, HealthSpring requested leave to file a motion for summary disposition on THM's Sherman Act claim. In response to HealthSpring's request, THM implored the Tribunal to reconsider its ruling that allowed HealthSpring to produce the subject contracts in redacted form. The Tribunal, declining to compel HealthSpring to produce the contacts in unredacted form, set an evidentiary hearing for THM to produce evidence in support of its Sherman Act claim. Prior to the hearing, THM withdrew its Sherman Act claim because it did not believe, with the evidence available, it could satisfy its burden of proof.
Between October and November 2017, the Tribunal held several evidentiary hearings on the remaining claims. Throughout this time, HealthSpring requested the Tribunal to enter an interim order requiring THM to turn over unreturned 360 Forms in THM's possession. On December 14, 2017, the Tribunal issued an order ("Order No. 6") requiring THM to return all undelivered 360 Forms to HealthSpring.

*584Healthspring Life & Health Ins. Co., Inc. v. Tex. Health Mgmt. LLC , 4:18-CV-242 (Dkt. #19), 2018 WL 3105655, at *1-2 (E.D. Tex. June 25, 2018).

II. The State Court Case

HealthSpring believed THM failed to comply with Order No. 6 and, consequently, on January 9, 2018, HealthSpring filed a Petition to Confirm Arbitration Order and for Injunctive Relief, in addition to, an Application for Temporary Restraining Order and Temporary Injunction to Enforce Arbitration Order in the 219th Judicial District Court of Collin County, Texas. Id. On January 12, 2018, the 219th District Court granted a temporary restraining order ("TRO") against THM and ordered THM to comply with the Tribunal's Order No. 6. Id. at *2. On January 26, 2018, the 219th District Court converted the TRO into a temporary injunction and confirmed Order No. 6. Id. THM ultimately failed to comply with Order No. 6. Id.

On March 14, 2018, the Tribunal in the arbitration rendered its Final Award, which denied all of THM's claims against HealthSpring. Id. On March 20, 2018, HealthSpring filed a Motion to File Under Seal requesting that the 219th District Court file the Tribunal's Final Award under seal. Id.

III. Removal and Remand

On April 6, 2018, THM removed the case filed in the 219th District Court to this Court on the basis of federal question jurisdiction (the "first-filed suit"). Id. On April 11, 2018, HealthSpring filed an Emergency Motion to Remand. Id. The motion was fully briefed by May 1, 2018. Notably, the Court remanded the first-filed suit to the 219th District Court on June 25, 2018, at 2:18 p.m. finding a lack of federal question jurisdiction. Healthspring Life & Health Ins. Co., Inc. , 4:18-CV-242 (Dkt. #19), 2018 WL 3105655.

IV. The 90-Minute Window

Despite the first-filed suit-pending in this Court between April and June 2018-THM filed this case in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on May 22, 2018 (the "second-filed suit") (Dkt. #1). In this case, THM petitions the Court to set aside the Final Award entered by the Tribunal pursuant to 9 U.S.C. § 10(a) (Dkt. #1).

HealthSpring notified Senior United States District Judge Victor Marrero of the Southern District of New York of the first-filed suit, but neither party notified this Court of the second-filed suit (Dkt. #16). Pursuant to the first-filed rule and 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a), Judge Marrero transferred the second-filed suit to this Court on June 18, 2018 (Dkt. #16). The second-filed suit was not administratively transferred until June 25, 2018, at 3:48 p.m. (Dkt. #18). During the seven-days between the signing of the order and the administrative transfer, neither party contacted the Court to notify it of the transferred second-filed suit, despite the pending emergency motion to remand in the first-filed suit.

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Bluebook (online)
380 F. Supp. 3d 580, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/tex-health-mgmt-llc-v-healthspring-life-health-ins-co-txed-2019.