STIPULATION AND ORDER REGARDING LITIGATION STAY

HAYWOOD S. GILLIAM, Jr., District Judge.

WHEREAS, pursuant to the Court's September 15, 2017 order, ECF No. 191, Renzel and Torres have come to an agreement to share the costs of a proposed pilot study for additional environmental investigation at the property subject to this litigation, with the costs to be borne by Renzel's and Torres's respective insurers, to support the development of a potentially less expensive remedial strategy and revised cost estimate;

WHEREAS, the environmental consultant estimates the proposed pilot study, once started, will take approximately five (5) months to complete;

WHEREAS, Renzel's motion for summary judgment was taken under submission at the September 14, 2017 hearing;

WHEREAS, Torres filed a motion for summary judgment against Renzel, ECF No. 187, currently set for hearing on November 16, 2017;

WHEREAS, the Court set the current deadlines in this matter in its September 15, 2017 order, including deadlines for briefing on Torres' motion for summary judgment against Renzel;

WHEREAS, rather than expending resources on attorneys and experts in continued litigation and a trial of the action, if the proposed pilot study is found to be generally successful, the parties believe this effort will significantly increase the likelihood they will be able to fully and finally resolve all of the outstanding litigation between them, and thus allow the parties to focus their time and financial resources on developing a technical approach to address the PCE contamination at the subject property; and

WHEREAS, the Renzel and Torres, as well as their insurance company representatives, have confirmed March 15, 2018 for an in-person mediation with Timothy Gallagher, Esq., who has presided over all prior mediations between the parties in connection with this matter;

THEREFORE, all parties1 hereby stipulate as follows, and request that the Court so order the terms of this stipulation:

1. The trial date and other Court dates and deadlines set forth in the Court's Order of September 15, 2017, are hereby vacated. A new Case Management Conference to discuss further scheduling of the case shall be set for April 17, 2018, at 2:00 p.m., and a joint case management statement shall be submitted by the parties no later than April 10, 2018 to notify the Court of the status of pilot study and the outcome of the parties' efforts to settle the pending action;

2. The briefing and hearing on Torres's summary judgment motion against Renzel, ECF No. 187, currently set for November 16, 2017, will remain on calendar;

3. All discovery and all motion practice in the action shall be stayed until further ordered by the Court;

4. Renzel and Torres, through their respective insurers, shall timely fund the proposed pilot study in its entirety;

5. The parties will evaluate the data from the pilot study and shall discuss the appropriateness of entering into a final settlement; and

6. On March 15, 2018, Renzel and Torres shall participate in a mediation with Timothy Gallagher, Esq. for the purposes of reaching a final settlement agreement. An insurance company representative with authority to settle shall attend the mediation session in-person for each of Renzel's and Torres's respective insurers.

IT IS SO STIPULATED

Good cause appearing, IT IS SO ORDERED.