Vaughan Furniture Co. v. Featureline Manufacturing, Inc.

156 F.R.D. 123, 30 Fed. R. Serv. 3d 947, 1994 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10804, 1994 WL 406536
CourtDistrict Court, M.D. North Carolina
DecidedMay 4, 1994
DocketNo. 6:92CV00379
StatusPublished
Cited by13 cases

This text of 156 F.R.D. 123 (Vaughan Furniture Co. v. Featureline Manufacturing, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, M.D. North Carolina primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Vaughan Furniture Co. v. Featureline Manufacturing, Inc., 156 F.R.D. 123, 30 Fed. R. Serv. 3d 947, 1994 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10804, 1994 WL 406536 (M.D.N.C. 1994).

Opinion

ORDER

ELIASON, United States Magistrate Judge.

This matter comes before the Court on defendants’ motion to compel two non-parties to supply documents pursuant to Fed. R.Civ.P. 45. Other parts of the motion are disposed of by a separate order. In this action, plaintiff contends defendants infringed its trademark/dress and copyright.

One of the subpoenas is directed to the Records Custodian of Cranford Silk Screen Process, Inc. The subpoena seeks all documents relating to plaintiff, its Farm House Collection of furniture and the copyrighted decals which Cranford Silk made for plaintiff. It also seeks all files which relate to any furniture company for which Cranford Silk has produced decals.

Defendants also subpoenaed the Records Custodian of a law firm, Rhodes, Coats & Bennett. This subpoena seeks all files which relate to the plaintiff and its Farm House Collection, including documents from plaintiff’s litigation attorneys’ law firm, Robinson, Maready, Lawing & Comerford, and all files which refer or relate in any way to “any opinions Howard A. McCord and/or Robert C. Rhodes have developed, discussed or expect to testify to at the trial of this action; and all files which refer or relate to [plaintiff or defendants and certain of their furniture lines].” Both subpoenas were served two days before the production date of October 28, 1993.

I.

Subpoena to Non-Party Cranford Silk

Non-party Cranford Silk filed timely objections to the subpoena. It objected on the grounds that the person on whom the subpoena was served is not its Records Custodian, the material sought was not relevant, the subpoena did not allow enough time for compliance, and that the records contain trade secrets and confidential research, development and commercial information which should be protected by a protective order.

Thereafter, on December 10, 1993, Cranford Silk filed a motion to quash the subpoena, alleging again that the person served is not the Records Custodian and again making a conelusory allegation that the records sought are confidential business records. It added a claim that production of the decals for inspection would be burdensome and oppressive.

As to the burdensomeness claim, non-party Cranford Silk did not support its objection or motion with any showing, such as through affidavits, which sets out in detail the expenses which would be involved, as it was required to do. In re Letters Rogatory, 144 F.R.D. 272, 278 (E.D.Pa.1992). Therefore, this objection is overruled.

The claim that the subpoena requests privileged documents suffers from the same deficiency of being conelusory as does the burdensomeness objection. In order to press such a claim, .Cranford Silk is required to give defendants a “description of the nature of the documents, communications or things not produced that is sufficient to enable the demanding party to contest the claim.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 45(d)(2). A review of Cranford Silk’s objections show they are conelusory and do not give this detailed information about the documents which would enable defendants to contest the claim, much less enough for the Court to rule on it. Therefore, the Court finds Cranford Silk’s objec[126]*126tion to the subpoena on the grounds that it encompasses privileged documents to be eonclusory and insufficient to withstand the motion to compel or to sustain the motion to quash the subpoena.1

The next matter involves Cranford Silk’s contention that the subpoena is invalid because defendants served an employee named Judy Inman and she is “not the Records Custodian of Cranford Silk Screen Process, Inc.” (Pleading No. 119) Petitioner Cranford Silk does not elaborate on this objection. Therefore, the Court is hard pressed to discern the reason behind it.

The subpoena was addressed to the Records Custodian of petitioner Cranford Silk and not Judy Inman. It was only served on her. It is clear that defendants have served a corporation and seek to have that corporation produce records. Such a procedure is permissible and petitioner Cranford Silk fails to show otherwise. Subpoenas may be directed to a corporation requiring that the corporation designate agents who will testify or produce documents for it. As noted in 8 Charles A. Wright & Arthur R. Miller, Federal Practice and Procedure § 2103 at 372-373 (1970):

It has long been clear that a subpoena duces tecum may be directed to a corporation in a district in which it is doing business. Rule 30(b), by requiring the corporation to designate who will testify for it, now makes it possible to direct a subpoena ad testificandum to a corporation____
The new procedure will reduce difficulties that have occurred in the past in designating the proper corporate officer or agent and will avoid the possibility that several officers and managing agents will be deposed in turn and each will disclaim personal knowledge of facts that are clearly known to persons within the organization and thus to the organization itself.

A subpoena is not defective in form because it is directed to the Custodian of Records. This objection is overruled.

The Court has considered that petitioner Cranford Silk may have intended to claim that the subpoena was improperly served. However,

[sjervice on an agent of a corporation is sufficient, even though the agent on whom service is made does not have control of the books and records required to be produced, since it is not the agent who is to respond but the corporation, and the agent in such a situation is merely the vehicle for reaching the corporation.

9 Wright & Miller, supra § 2461 at 447 (1971); see also U.S. v. Custodian of Records, 743 F.Supp. 783, 787 (W.D.Okl.1990) (receptionist). Petitioner has not shown that Judy Inman is not a proper agent for service of the subpoena. It is immaterial that she may not be the Custodian of Records as Cranford Silk argues. Therefore, any implied allegation of improper service is without merit or else waived.

Finally, the Court considers petitioner’s claim that the records are irrelevant and that it did not have time to obey the subpoena. With respect to relevance, neither side presents much substantive argument explaining their position, as opposed to making conclusory statements. It seems that records relating to plaintiff and its copyrighted decals are either relevant or may lead to relevant material. The Court does not apply a stringent standard in this situation. However, the Court does not understand why the files relating to other furniture makers would be relevant at all and that part of the motion to compel will be denied.

The last matter concerns the amount of time given to obey the subpoena. The Court does find, nothing else appearing, that two days is not sufficient time to comply with the subpoena and that petitioner’s objections are well taken in that regard. However, rather than quashing the subpoena and forcing defendants to go through extra costs and expenses of service, it will be sufficient that the time for compliance with the subpoena be extended to and including twenty days from the filing of this Order.

[127]*127 II.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

JJK Mineral Co., LLC v. Swiger
292 F.R.D. 323 (N.D. West Virginia, 2013)
E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co. v. Kolon Industries, Inc.
269 F.R.D. 600 (E.D. Virginia, 2010)
In Re Subpoena Duces Tecum to AOL, LLC
550 F. Supp. 2d 606 (E.D. Virginia, 2008)
In Re Grand Jury Subpoena
533 F. Supp. 2d 602 (W.D. North Carolina, 2007)
Aspex Eyewear, Inc. v. E'Lite Optik, Inc.
276 F. Supp. 2d 1084 (D. Nevada, 2003)
In re Motorsports Merchandise Antitrust Litigation
186 F.R.D. 344 (W.D. Virginia, 1999)
State Ex Rel. United Hospital Center, Inc. v. Bedell
484 S.E.2d 199 (West Virginia Supreme Court, 1997)
Hager v. Bluefield Regional Medical Center, Inc.
170 F.R.D. 70 (District of Columbia, 1997)
Multiform Dessicants, Inc. v. Stanhope Products Co.
930 F. Supp. 45 (W.D. New York, 1996)
United States Ex Rel. Mayman v. Martin Marietta Corp.
886 F. Supp. 1243 (D. Maryland, 1995)
Micron Separations, Inc. v. Pall Corp.
159 F.R.D. 361 (D. Massachusetts, 1995)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
156 F.R.D. 123, 30 Fed. R. Serv. 3d 947, 1994 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10804, 1994 WL 406536, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/vaughan-furniture-co-v-featureline-manufacturing-inc-ncmd-1994.