Joint Stipulation and Order to Extend Deadlines

NANCY J. KOPPE, Magistrate Judge.

Plaintiffs Eugene Goldsmith et al. ("Plaintiffs") and Defendant Aargon Agency, Inc. (incorrectly named as Aargon Collection Agency) and Armand Fried ("Defendants" and together with Plaintiffs, the "Parties") by and through their counsel of record hereby stipulate to modify the Court's May 15, 2017 Order, ECF No. 76, to extend the remaining dates in this matter on the 20 consolidated suits at issue, for 90 days for good cause.

Pursuant to LR 26-4, good cause exists to amend the Scheduling Order.

As this Court is aware, this action involves 20 consolidated lawsuits. The discovery involving the lawsuits and the records pertaining thereto are extensive. Defendant has had to dedicate a full-time employee to work on the plethora of issues and production of document matters involved in the 20 Consolidated cases at issue, and to assist Counsel for Defendants.

With regard to the production of documents, Defendant had to produce documents pertaining to 20 separate lawsuits involving thousands of pages of documents that involve transactions spanning over a five-year period of time. In addition, in order to develop the factual record, the parties have to review thousands of records involving Court records in over 20 cases.

On October 20, 2017, Plaintiffs' counsel, Vernon Nelson, suffered a severe automobile accident wherein all of his airbags deployed. As a result, he has had to take much time off from regular work and the press of business due to suffering from concussion syndrome, involving dizziness, nausea and vertigo. Counsel of defendant, of course, has accommodated counsel for plaintiff with regard to various case matters due to his health concerns, as has been requested and needed.

From early September 2017 through late October 2017, general counsel for Defendant who oversees this litigation on behalf of Aargon was distracted and absent from work for due to the impact of Hurricane Irma and its effect on Defense counsel's elderly mother and multiple family members who reside in Southern Florida. These family members were adversely affected and displaced by Hurricane Irma. Defense counsel's elderly mother had been without power for extended periods of time and had to be relocated. During the month of September and to the present, Defense counsel has spent countless hours arranging for his family's and mother's evacuation ahead of the hurricane and in dealing with contractors to protect property in securing property, and counsel has traveled to and from Miami, in order to assist with these matters. In the aftermath of Hurricane Irma, counsel has had to assist with relocating family members, scheduling medical appointments, handling lack of power issues, property damage, and the hiring and working with numerous contractors. The amount of time dedicated to tending to these personal, unforeseen events has impacted defense counsel's ability to tend to critical matters pertaining to this case. Like Counsel for Defendant, Plaintiffs' counsel has accommodated counsel for Defendant with regard to various case matters, as is requested and needed.

Moreover, this consolidated action is comprised of 20 different underlying actions. Counsel for the parties have met and conferred in person and over the past few months regarding the claims of these Plaintiffs, hoping to narrow the issues prior to the taking of depositions and prior to engaging in additional discovery.

This request for extension of deadlines is made specifically in this fee-shifting matter since the taking of depositions are a significant expense. The discovery extension is also requested to resolve multiple outstanding discovery disputes and to determine the availability of Defendant's 30(b)(6) witnesses and the 20 Plaintiffs for deposition. The 30(b)(6) deposition of Defendant Aargon and the deposition of Defendant have been tentatively scheduled for late December.

In addition, Defendant is working with Plaintiff's counsel to schedule the depositions of 20 Plaintiffs and various additional percipient witnesses, involving potentially the deposition of another 10-12 witnesses or more.

For these reasons, the Parties jointly request that this Court modify the May 15, 2017 Order to provide an additional 90 days to complete discovery, and then in the ordinary course, to file dispositive motions, and the proposed joint pretrial order as described in the proposed timeline above.

This is the Parties' first request for an extension of these deadlines.

IT IS SO ORDERED.