FEDERAL CURE v. LAPPIN

MOTION for Extension of Time to Answer or Otherwise Respond to the Complaint

D.D.C.September 14, 2007

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA ) FEDERAL CURE (FedCURE), ) ) Plaintiff, ) ) v. ) Civil Action No. 07-00843 (RBW) ) HARLEY G. LAPPIN, DIRECTOR ) FEDERAL BUREAU OF PRISONS, ) ) Defendant. ) ) ) CONSENT MOTION FOR ENLARGEMENT OF TIME Pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 6(b)(1), Defendant, Harley G. Lappin, Director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, by and through undersigned counsel, respectfully moves this Court to enlarge the time to answer or otherwise respond to the Complaint. Defendant respectfully requests that the deadline for responding to the Complaint be extended by two business days, from September 14, 2007 to September 18, 2007. This is Defendant’s fourth request for an enlargement of time in this case, and no scheduling order has been entered. Pursuant to Local Rule 7(m), on September 14, 2007, the undersigned counsel for the Defendant called Plaintiff’s counsel to discuss the above motion, and Plaintiff’s counsel advised government counsel that he consented to the requested enlargement of time. In support of this motion, Defendant avers the following: 1. On August 29, 2007, Defendant filed a Motion for Enlargement of Time, his third in this case. In that Motion, Defendant respectfully requested that his deadline for responding to Plaintiff’s Complaint be extended by sixteen days, from August 29, 2007 to September 14, 2007. Case 1:07-cv-00843-RBW Document 7 Filed 09/14/2007 Page 1 of 4 2 See Docket Entry No. 6. The Court granted this motion. See Minute Order dated September 5, 2007. 2. Counsel for Defendant anticipates filing a dispositive motion in response to the Complaint. He has been hard at work on that motion. Despite his best efforts, he will not be able to complete an adequate response to the Complaint by September 14, 2007. 3. Since August 29, 2007, when the Defendant filed his Third Motion for Enlargement of Time, the undersigned counsel has contended with numerous deadlines in his other cases. During that period, he prepared and filed the following pleadings, among others: (1) a Motion to Dismiss, or in the Alternative, for Summary Judgment in West v. Jackson, Civil Action No. 07-0727 (D.D.C.); (2) a Reply brief in Bonaparte v. United States Department of Justice, Civil Action No. 07-749 (D.D.C.); and (3) a Reply brief in Watts v. Gonzalez, Civil Action No. 06- 777 (D.D.C.), and handled a number of matters related to his other case assignments. 4. Within the next week, counsel for Defendant will need to prepare a response to a set of interrogatories and a request for production, conduct a deposition and defend another deposition, all in connection with Von Muhlenbrock v. Billington, Civil Action No. 05-1921 (D.D.C.).. 5. Counsel for Defendant regrets that the current Motion for Enlargement of Time is being filed outside of this Court’s four day filing rule. Counsel filed a brief on September 12, 2007, in Watts v. Gonzalez, Civil Action No. 06-777 (D.D.C.), which proved over the past few days to be a much more complicated and time consuming matter than he had earlier anticipated it would be, necessitating this enlargement. Because the complexity of that other case was not fully apparent until this week, after the lapse of the four day period, counsel for Defendant was unable to file this motion within the Court’s time limitations for motions for an enlargement of time on Case 1:07-cv-00843-RBW Document 7 Filed 09/14/2007 Page 2 of 4 3 his deadline in this case. This extension is sought in good faith and will not unfairly prejudice any party. Allowing Defendant some additional time to formulate its response will aid both the parties and the Court in the development and resolution of this case. WHEREFORE, based on the foregoing, Defendant respectfully requests that the time for answering or otherwise responding to Plaintiff’s Complaint be extended to September 18, 2007. Respectfully submitted, __/s/____________________________________ JEFFREY A. TAYLOR, D.C. BAR # 498610 United States Attorney __/s/____________________________________ RUDOLPH CONTRERAS, D.C. BAR # 434122 Assistant United States Attorney __/s/____________________________________ JONATHAN C. BRUMER, D.C. BAR # 463328 Special Assistant United States Attorney 555 Fourth Street, N.W., Room E4815 Washington, D.C. 20530 (202) 514-7431 (202) 514-8780 (facsimile) Case 1:07-cv-00843-RBW Document 7 Filed 09/14/2007 Page 3 of 4 CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I HEREBY CERTIFY that, on this 14 day of September, 2007, the foregoing Consentth Motion for Enlargement of Time was served upon Plaintiff’s counsel pursuant to the Court’s Electronic Case Filing System, addressed to: James R. Klimaski Lynn I. Miller KLIMASKI & ASSOCIATES, P.C. 1625 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W. Suite 500 Washington, D.C. 20036-2001 s/Jonathan C. Brumer JONATHAN C. BRUMER, D.C. BAR # 463328 Special Assistant United States Attorney 555 4th Street, N.W., Room E4815 Washington, D.C. 20530 (202) 514-7431 (202) 514-8780 (facsimile) Case 1:07-cv-00843-RBW Document 7 Filed 09/14/2007 Page 4 of 4 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA ) FEDERAL CURE (FedCURE), ) ) Plaintiff, ) ) v. ) Civil Action No. 07-00843 (RBW) ) HARLEY G. LAPPIN, DIRECTOR ) FEDERAL BUREAU OF PRISONS, ) ) Defendant. ) ) ) ORDER UPON CONSIDERATION of Defendant’s Consent Motion for Enlargement of Time to respond to the complaint, and the record herein, and it appearing that good cause exists for the requested extension, it is this ______ day of _________________, 2007, ORDERED, that Defendant’s Motion be, and hereby is, GRANTED, and it is FURTHER ORDERED, that Defendant shall have until September 18, 2007, to respond to the Complaint. ________________________________________ REGGIE B. WALTON United States District Court Judge Case 1:07-cv-00843-RBW Document 7-2 Filed 09/14/2007 Page 1 of 2 2 Copies of this order to: James R. Klimaski Lynn I. Miller KLIMASKI & ASSOCIATES, P.C. 1625 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W. Suite 500 Washington, D.C. 20036-2001 Jonathan C. Brumer Special Assistant United States Attorney United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia 555 Fourth Street, N.W., Room E-4815 Washington, D.C. 20530 Case 1:07-cv-00843-RBW Document 7-2 Filed 09/14/2007 Page 2 of 2