STIPULATION TO EXTEND TIME FOR DEFENDANT TO RESPOND TO PLAINTIFF'S OPENING BRIEF; ORDER

SHEILA K. OBERTO, Magistrate Judge.

ROSEMARY TAYLOR (Plaintiff) and NANCY A. BERRYHILL, Acting Commissioner Of Social Security (Defendant or the Commissioner), hereby stipulate, subject to the approval of the Court, to a 30-day extension of time for Defendant to respond to Plaintiff's Opening Brief (Docket Number 12). This is the first request for an extension of time sought in the above-captioned matter. The current deadline was August 24, 2018, and the new deadline would be September 24, 2018. Defendant requests this additional time due to an inadvertent calendaring error and workload. The undersigned currently has 11 oppositions to motions for summary judgment or opening briefs and one oral argument due before the requested deadline.

The parties further stipulate that the scheduling order in the above-captioned matter be modified accordingly.

ORDER

Pursuant to the Court's Scheduling Order, Defendant's responsive brief was due to be filed later August 24, 2018. (Doc. 5.) The parties filed the above "Stipulation to Extend Time for Defendant to Respond to Plaintiff's Opening Brief" on August 27, 2018—three days after Defendant's answering brief deadline expired. (Doc. 13.)

The Court may extend time to act after the deadline has expired because of "excusable neglect." Fed. R. Civ. P. 6(b)(1)(B). Here, although the Stipulation demonstrates good cause under to support the request for extension of time (see Fed. R. Civ. P. 16(b)(4)), no such excusable neglect has articulated—much less shown—to justify the untimeliness of the request. Notwithstanding deficiency, given the absence of bad faith or prejudice to Plaintiff (as evidenced by her agreement to the extension of time after the deadline), and in view of the liberal construction of Fed. R. Civ. 6(b)(1) effectuate the general purpose of seeing that cases are tried on the merits, see Ahanchian v. Xenon Pictures, Inc., 624 F.3d 1253, 1258-59 (9th Cir. 2010), the Court GRANTS the parties' stipulated request. The parties are cautioned that future post hoc requests for extensions of time will be viewed disfavor.

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Defendant shall have an extension of time, to and including September 24, 2018, by which to file her answering brief. All other deadlines set forth in the Scheduling Order (Doc. 5) are modified accordingly.

IT IS SO ORDERED.