ANNE Y. SHIELDS, Magistrate Judge.
Plaintiff Craig Roth ("Roth") commenced this action against the County of Nassau ("Defendant" or "Nassau"), alleging disability discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C. §12101 et. seq. (hereinafter "ADA") and parallel claims under the New York Executive Law § 296 ("NY Exec. Law"). Presently before this Court is Plaintiff's motion to quash a subpoena issued to Plaintiff's current employer, the New York City Police Department ("NYPD"), an entity that is not a party to this action.
Plaintiff is a twenty-three year old male. Compl. ¶ 14, DE 1. He was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at the age of seven.
Less than three months after NCPD disqualified Plaintiff, he graduated from the New York City Police Department Academy. The NYPD's hiring process is similar to that of the NCPD's process. Aside from the taking of a polygraph test, the other requirements of the two police departments, including physical fitness, are almost identical. Although NCPD found Plaintiff's disability rendered Plaintiff unfit, Plaintiff passed NYPD's required training, and the NYPD determined Plaintiff to be medically fit.
Plaintiff commenced this action on November 5, 2015. DE 1. Defendants answered on January 11, 2015. DE 14. At that time the case was before District Judge I. Leo Glasser and Magistrate Judge Cheryl L. Pollak. On February 2, 2016, Judge Pollak held an initial conference, where she set an initial discovery schedule, directing that Parties respond to document requests by April 25, 2016. DE 15. The next day, the case was reassigned to District Judge Leonard D. Wexler and the undersigned.
At the October 5, 2016 status conference, this Court directed that all depositions shall be complete by November 30, 2016, that the IME shall be complete by December 31, 2016, and that all expert discovery shall be complete by March 31, 2017.
As noted above, the motion to quash is regarding a subpoena addressed to the NYPD. The NYPD is not a party to this action; it is Plaintiff's current employer. The Subpoena seeks production of documents pertaining to Plaintiff's current employment. DE 24, Exhibit ("Ex.") 1. Counsel representing Plaintiff has moved to quash the Subpoena.
At the outset, the Court notes that Plaintiff alleges standing to move to quash the Subpoena on the ground that he has "a legitimate privacy interest in the information sought."
The Subpoena specifically seeks:
In general, a party may obtain discovery of any non-privileged matter that is relevant to a claim or defense of any party and proportional to the needs of the case. FED. R. CIV. P. 26(b)(1). Nonetheless, a court has discretion to circumscribe discovery even of relevant evidence by making any order which justice requires "to protect a party or person from annoyance, embarrassment, oppression, or undue burden or expense." FED. R. CIV. P. 26(c)(1);
FED. R. CIV. P. 45(d) provides additional protection for non-parties subject to subpoena by mandating that a court "quash or modify the subpoena if it . . . subjects [the] person to undue burden." FED. R. CIV. P. 45(d)(3)(A)(iv). Determinations of issues of "undue burden" are committed to the discretion of the trial court.
FED. R. CIV. P. 26(b)(2)(C). Rule 26(b)(1) states:
Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(b)(1). Thus, it is settled that "judges may prevent [a] proposed deposition when the facts and circumstances are such that it creates an inappropriate burden or hardship."
Plaintiff argues that the Court should quash Defendant's subpoena in its entirety on the basis that none of the documents sought by the subpoena are relevant. Plaintiff reasons that he brought claims of disability discrimination, and neither Plaintiff's allegations nor Defendant's defenses have anything to do with the documents Defendants are seeking. Pl. Mot. at 2, DE 24. Plaintiff argues that (1) the records pertaining to Plaintiff's current employment have absolutely no connection to, and are in no way relevant to, Plaintiff's claims of disability discrimination against his former employer; (2) the subpoena is harassing and overbroad; and (3) even if the Court found the documents the subpoena sought were relevant, it should be quashed as it poses a greater burden on Plaintiff than a benefit to Defendant.
Defendant claims that it is entitled to all of the documents sought by the subpoena on the theory that such documents are relevant. Defendant states that the medical records, documentation, and other materials Plaintiff provided to NYPD as part of his application process are relevant with regard to whether Plaintiff was hired under false pretenses, whether he was hired on the bases of incomplete or inaccurate information, and that it goes directly to impeaching the plaintiff's credibility, honesty, and character. Defendant's Motion in Opposition ("Def. Mot. in Opp.") at 2-4, DE 25. Defendants argue that the NYPD's records regarding Plaintiff's disciplinary information and arrest statistics are relevant because Plaintiff seeks to utilize his current employment with the NYPD as evidence that he is capable of performing the duties of a police officer. Plaintiff further argues that the NYPD's records regarding Plaintiff's compensation and benefits are relevant to Plaintiff's lost wages claims. Thus, Defendant urges this Court to deny Plaintiff's motion to quash.
Defendant argues that by comparing the hiring decisions of the NCPD and the NYPD, Plaintiff has put his application process with the NYPD at issue. Defendant reasons that Plaintiff should not, on one hand be permitted to support his claim of discrimination with the fact he was hired and found to be medically fit by the NYPD despite his disability, and on the other hand prevent disclosure of the materials submitted to the NYPD which formed the basis of its decision to hire Plaintiff. Defendant's Motion in Reply ("Def. Mot. in Opp.") at 3, DE 25. Defendant argues that such records are particularly relevant to the Plaintiff's claim because a review of Plaintiff's medical records revealed that Plaintiff had asked his doctor to withhold a particular medical record from the NYPD. Specifically, one of the records from Plaintiff's physician, Dr. Herson, had a handwritten note stating, "[d]o not show to NYPD." DE 25-1. Defendant therefore argues that the NYPD's decision to hire Plaintiff may have been made upon inaccurate or incomplete information. Def. Mot. in Opp. at 2. The Defendant additionally points to an excerpt of Dr. Herson's transcript, in which he stated that although in his opinion Plaintiff was completely capable to perform the duties required by the NYPD, Plaintiff may have made that request not to disclose the form because Plaintiff though it showed that his control of the diabetes had worsened.
Plaintiff points to a portion of that same transcript; however, it is a portion that was not provided to the Court. According to Plaintiff, when asked about the notation, Dr. Herson testified that he does not recall if he provided records to the NYPD but after reviewing his chart it appears that he submitted a fitness screening test, a physician's certification, and a summation. Plaintiff's Motion in Reply ("Pl. Mot. in Reply") at 1, DE 27. Plaintiff claims that no other information was requested by the NYPD, so no other documentation was provided.
Plaintiff relies on
Here, Plaintiff's complaint alleges that the NCPD discriminated against him by disqualifying him for the position of police officer. In support of this claim, Plaintiff alleges that in contrast to the NCPD, the NYPD found him to be "medically fit" to become a police officer. Compl. ¶ 38, DE 1. Plaintiff's complaint specifically states that the process to become a police officer with the NYPD is almost identical to the process utilized by the NCPD.
Conversely, Plaintiff has not put his current ability to carry out his job performance at issue. Indeed, the number of arrests made by Plaintiff and Plaintiff's disciplinary records are not indicative of whether the NCPD discriminated against Plaintiff when it disqualified him for a police officer position.
As stated above, the Court finds the documents sought in connection with Plaintiff's application to the NYPD to be relevant. The Court also finds the documents sought with regard to Plaintiff's current compensation and benefit information to be relevant, as such information may relate to Plaintiff's claim for lost wages. Accordingly, the Court must consider the nature of the relevant information, whether its production is proportional to the needs of the case, and if the production would result in an undue burden. Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(b)(1).
As to the documents sought relating to Plaintiff's current compensation and benefit information, the Court finds the Defendant has neither provided case law to support its entitlement to such records, nor has it made a showing that such records cannot be obtained through less intrusive means, namely by requesting the documents from Plaintiff. Pl. Mot. in Reply at 2-3. Accordingly, Defendant is not entitled to subpoena information pertaining to Plaintiff's benefits and compensation from Plaintiff's employer, but must obtain the information from less intrusive means where possible.
As to the documents sought in connection with Plaintiff's entire application to the NYPD, the Court finds such request to be overly broad and not proportional to the needs of the case. Indeed, the Defendant has failed to demonstrate how any documents and materials submitted by Plaintiff in connection with his application to the NYPD is proportional to a case alleging discrimination based upon a disability. As such, the Subpoena shall be tailored to include only documents related to Plaintiff's health and/or medical condition which were provided by or on behalf of Plaintiff in connection with his application to become a NYPD officer, including but not limited to plaintiff's official application, medical disclosures, and medical records.
As to Plaintiff's argument that the service of a subpoena on his future employer is burdensome because it may subject him to further retaliation, the Court finds such argument unpersuasive. The nature of the action that Plaintiff has commenced is discrimination, Plaintiff has alleged that his employment with the NYPD supports the allegation that the NCPD discriminated against him, as such documentation forming the basis of the NYPD's decision to hire Plaintiff squarely fits within the "needs of the case." Thus, although Plaintiff may be faced with a burden should his employer be issued a subpoena, a greater burden exists on the Defendant if it does not obtain such documents. Therefore, Defendant may subpoena documents related to Plaintiff's health and/or medical condition which were provided by or on behalf of Plaintiff in connection with his application to become a NYPD officer, including but not limited to plaintiff's official application, medical disclosures, and medical records.
For the foregoing reasons, the Plaintiff's motion to quash as set forth in Docket Entry [24] is granted in part and denied in part. The motion to quash is denied to the extent that Defendant may issue a subpoena on the New York Police Department seeking production of documents related to Plaintiff's health and/or medical condition which were provided by or on behalf of Plaintiff in connection with his application to become a NYPD officer, including but not limited to plaintiff's official application, medical disclosures, and medical records. In all other aspects, the motion to quash is granted.