WILLIAM B. SHUBB, District Judge.
Plaintiff AMERICAN HOME ASSURANCE COMPANY, defendant CASHMAN EQUIPMENT COMPANY and defendant MIRATECH CORPORATION, by and through their respective counsel of record, hereby stipulate and respectfully request the Court to enter a stipulated order amending the pre-trial scheduling order, as follows:
1. The trial date in this matter is October 31, 2014. This is the fourth trial date in this matter and was changed previously due to change of plaintiffs' counsel, need for extensive discovery due to the complicated nature of the case involving damages of $15 million, and efforts to settle the matter through negotiations. The parties request that the trial date and all pre-trial dates be extended approximately 11 months as Cashman's Motion to File a Cross-Complaint against HUG Engineering AG ("HUG") was recently granted and Cashman is in the process of serving HUG.
2. Since the time of the initial status conference the parties were diligently involved in conducting extensive written discovery. As a result of that discovery, certain persons were identified who the parties intended to depose. Some of these depositions have been completed and it has led parties to discuss settlement much earlier than anticipated. Plaintiff's counsel has recently sent a written demand, which both defendants are considering at the moment. All parties have agreed to retain Judge Gilbert as the mediator and are attempting to schedule mediation. In light of these ongoing settlement discussions all parties intend to reschedule the trial date and other discovery deadlines for another three months.
3. Additionally, Cashman was recently granted permission to file a cross-complaint against HUG. Cashman is in the process of serving such cross-complaint on HUG. Once HUG makes an appearance, HUG will need time to acquaint itself with this complex matter and prepare for expert and other discovery and settlement negotiations. In light of the addition of new party and to give it sufficient time to prepare for the matter, all parties intend to reschedule the trial date and other discovery deadlines for another 11 months.
4. Additionally, the disclosure of expert witness and reports is currently due on January 31, 2014, and all parties wish not to spend their time and financial resources at this time on their experts but rather use it to settle the matter through negotiations.
5. This is a complicated case involving alleged damages of over $15,000,000 and involving claims and defenses involving negligence, products liability, indemnity and premises liability.
6. The parties jointly submit this stipulation and request to revise the existing pre-trial schedule order for the dual purposes of: (a) allowing the parties the time to resolve the matter amicably through settlement negotiations, and (b) prevent the expenditure by all parties on their experts and use those resources to resolve the matter through settlement.
7. Based on the foregoing, all parties strongly urge the court to extend the current deadlines set out in the pre-trial scheduling order. The parties jointly and unanimously move that the following proposed amended pre-trial scheduling order submitted by all parties be entered by the court.
8. This stipulation is not made for the purposes of delay, but so that the parties have sufficient time to engage in settlement discussions. All parties unanimously agree that a reasonable extension is necessary based on the foregoing.
IT IS SO ORDERED: