Filed: May 29, 2013
Latest Update: May 29, 2013
Summary: JOINT STIPULATION AND REQUEST FOR A STAY PENDING CLASS CERTIFICATION RULING SAUNDRA B. ARMSTRONG, District Judge. Plaintiffs Mauder and Alice Chao, Deogeneso and Glorina Palugod, and Maritza Pinel (collectively, "Plaintiffs") and defendant Aurora Loan Services, LLC ("Aurora") (collectively, the "Parties") hereby stipulate and agree, and request the Court to Order, as follows. I. BACKGROUND This putative class action concerns Aurora's mortgage loan "workout agreements," also known as "special
Summary: JOINT STIPULATION AND REQUEST FOR A STAY PENDING CLASS CERTIFICATION RULING SAUNDRA B. ARMSTRONG, District Judge. Plaintiffs Mauder and Alice Chao, Deogeneso and Glorina Palugod, and Maritza Pinel (collectively, "Plaintiffs") and defendant Aurora Loan Services, LLC ("Aurora") (collectively, the "Parties") hereby stipulate and agree, and request the Court to Order, as follows. I. BACKGROUND This putative class action concerns Aurora's mortgage loan "workout agreements," also known as "special ..
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JOINT STIPULATION AND REQUEST FOR A STAY PENDING CLASS CERTIFICATION RULING
SAUNDRA B. ARMSTRONG, District Judge.
Plaintiffs Mauder and Alice Chao, Deogeneso and Glorina Palugod, and Maritza Pinel (collectively, "Plaintiffs") and defendant Aurora Loan Services, LLC ("Aurora") (collectively, the "Parties") hereby stipulate and agree, and request the Court to Order, as follows.
I. BACKGROUND
This putative class action concerns Aurora's mortgage loan "workout agreements," also known as "special forbearance agreements." The Parties incorporate by reference their respective factual statements of the case from the Parties' prior Consolidated Joint Case Management Statement (Doc. # 59), and Joint Stipulation to Modify the Pre-Trial Schedule. Doc. #186.
Plaintiffs' Renewed Motion for Class Certification (Doc. # 149) is fully briefed and remains pending. The hearing on the Motion, originally scheduled for February 12, 2013, was taken off calendar by the Court.
A mandatory settlement conference is scheduled to take place on May 21, 2013 before Magistrate Judge Nathanael Cousins, and the parties must file settlement statements by May 14, 2013. Doc. # 195.
Under the current pre-trial schedule, fact discovery is scheduled to close on July 26, 2013. Doc. # 193. Approximately ninety (90) days remain in the fact discovery period as of the filing of this stipulation.
The Parties agree that the forthcoming ruling on the Renewed Motion for Class Certification will have significant implications on (a) any settlement conference or mediation, and (b) the remaining fact and expert discovery to be taken in the case, in particular deposition discovery. The Parties are thus in agreement that postponing the settlement conference and staying deposition discovery until after the Court issues its ruling on class certification is both cost-effective and in the interests of judicial efficiency.
For clarity, the Parties do not seek to stay their ongoing written discovery and do not seek to stay their ability to advance ongoing discovery disputes before Judge Beeler (which particularly includes the Court's ability to order a Rule 30(b)(6) deposition). The Parties specifically envision that the ninety (90) days currently remaining in the fact discovery period will be preserved and maintained such that the fact discovery cut-off shall be set for at least ninety (90) days from the date that any such stay is lifted.
Accordingly, the Parties request the Court to Order as follows:
1. The current pre-trial schedule (Doc. # 193) is vacated;
2. The settlement conference scheduled for May 21, 2013 (Doc. #195) is taken off calendar;
3. The parties will engage in a settlement conference or private mediation within thirty (30) days after the Court issues a ruling on the Renewed Motion for Class Certification;
4. The parties must file a joint status report and/or proposed revised pretrial schedule 45 days after the Court issues a ruling on the Renewed Motion for Class Certification;
5. The case, including all discovery except as provided below, is stayed until and through 45 days after the Court issues a ruling on the Renewed Motion for Class Certification; and
6. Discovery that has already been served will not be stayed, including discovery pursuant to Judge Beeler's discovery Orders in this case. The Parties will not serve new sets of discovery requests or note percipient witness depositions during the pendency of the requested stay.
IT IS HEREBY STIPULATED AND AGREED, by and between the undersigned counsel for Plaintiffs and Aurora, upon consent of the Court, that:
The case is PARTIALLY STAYED as set forth above and the pretrial schedule MODIFIED as set forth herein.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
