JOINT STIPULATION AND ORDER TO ENLARGE THE TIME TO TRANSMIT AND FILE THE CERTIFIED ADMINISTRATIVE RECORD

HAYWOOD S. GILLIAM, JR., District Judge.

Plaintiff Steven Bruce and Federal Defendant Alex M. Azar II, by and through counsel, hereby stipulate as follows:

WHEREAS the parties had agreed that Federal Defendant would file and transmit the Administrative Record by December 19, 2018 (Dkt. 20);

WHEREAS Federal Defendant, at the time the joint stipulation was entered into, had already placed a request with agency staff to prepare the Administrative Record, and where there was no indication at that time of future budget issues, which would impede timely transmission and filing;

WHEREAS in the final stages of preparing the Administrative Record, Federal Defendant encountered unforeseen budget issues;

WHEREAS the budget issues have resulted in insufficient funding for a certified transcription of one of the three hearing transcripts;

WHEREAS Federal Defendant is unable to certify a partial record and thus transmission and filing of a certified Administrative Record on the stipulated date of December 19, 2018 is no longer possible;

WHEREAS Federal Defendant still seeks to abide by the Court-ordered deadline of December 19, 2018 to provide the Administrative Record to Plaintiff by December 19, 2018 and by the Court-ordered deadline to meet and confer about the content of the record and file a statement by January 4, 2019 (Dkt. 50);

NOW THEREFORE the parties hereby STIPULATE that Federal Defendant will produce to Plaintiff an uncertified Administrative Record on December 19, 2018, which will contain all documents relied upon by Federal Defendant in making the decisions in Plaintiff's cases, transcripts from two of Plaintiff's hearings before Federal Defendant, and an audio file from one of the hearings before Federal Defendant, so that the parties can meet their court-ordered meet and confer requirements set forth in the Court's December 4, 2018 Minute Entry (Dkt. 50);

The parties further STIPULATE, pursuant to Local Rule 6-1(a), that by January 30, 2019 or sooner, if at all possible, Federal Defendant will transmit and file the certified Administrative Record or provide Plaintiff with a status update regarding the certification of the Administrative Record;

The parties further STIPULATE that although Federal Defendant does not believe there will be any discrepancies between the uncertified record being furnished to Plaintiff on December 19, 2018 and the certified record being transmitted and filed at a later date, to the extent there are unforeseen differences, Federal Defendant will highlight such differences upon transmission of the certified record;

Nothing in this Stipulation shall preclude Plaintiff from seeking relief in the event the uncertified or certified record does not contain all documents relied upon and/or mentioned by the Medicare Appeals Council or the Administrative Law Judges in issuing their decisions;

The parties further STIPULATE that the certified Administrative Record will be lodged under seal.

* In compliance with Civil Local Rule 5-1(i)(3), the filer of this document attests under penalty of perjury that counsel for Plaintiff has concurred in the filing of this document.

ORDER

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that by December 19, 2018, Federal Defendant will produce to Plaintiff an uncertified Administrative Record and by January 30, 2019, Federal Defendant will transmit and file the certified Administrative Record or provide Plaintiff with a status update regarding the certification of the Administrative Record. Nothing is this Stipulation shall preclude Plaintiff from seeking relief relating to the contents of the uncertified or certified Administrative Record.