(SS) Lupe De Los Santos v. Commissioner of Social Security ( 2021 )

1 2 3 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 4 EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 5 6 ANTHONY LUPE DE LOS SANTOS, CASE NUMBER: 1:20-cv-00919-GSA 7 Plaintiff, 8 ORDER REJECTING STIPULATION v. IN PART 9 KILOLO KIJAKAZI, acting 10 Commissioner of Social Security, (Doc. 20) 11 Defendant. 12 13 14 The parties stipulate to a 45-day extension of time from September 24, 2021 to November 15 8, 2021 for Plaintiff to file his opening brief due to counsel’s increased work responsibilities. This 16 is the first extension sought by either party in this matter. 17 The Scheduling Order allows for a single extension of thirty days by the stipulation of the 18 parties. Doc. 7 at 3. Beyond the single extension by stipulation, “requests to modify [the 19 scheduling] order must be made by written motion and will be granted only for good cause.” Id. 20 When considering whether good cause exists to modify a scheduling order, courts consider 21 the foreseeability of the impediment to meeting the deadline and the party’s diligence in seeking 22 the extension once it became apparent they could not meet the deadline. See Sharp v. Covenant 23 Care LLC, 288 F.R.D. 465, 467 (S.D. Cal. 2012); Ordaz Gonzalez v. Cty. of Fresno, No. 1:18-CV- 24 01558-BAM, 2020 WL 2539287, at *2 (E.D. Cal. May 19, 2020). The Court has the inherent 25 power to manage its own docket to achieve an orderly and expeditious resolution of cases. Southern 26 California Edison Co. v. Lynch, 307 F.3d 794 (9th Cir. 2002). 27 Although counsel provided sufficient cause for an extension, and sought the extension well 28 in advance of the upcoming deadline, counsel has not availed himself of the 30-day extension as of 1 right provided by the scheduling order. Accordingly, it is premature to grant a 45-day extension 2 for cause. 3 Plaintiff will be granted the 30-day automatic extension provided by the scheduling order. 4 In the event the 30-day extension is insufficient to accommodate counsel’s schedule, counsel may 5 renew the request for an extension for cause. As provided by the scheduling order, such a request 6 should take the form of a motion, not a stipulation. Doc. 7 at 3. 7 Accordingly, it is ORDERED that Plaintiff’s deadline to file an opening brief is extended 8 to and including October 25. 2021. All other deadlines are adjusted accordingly. 9 IT IS SO ORDERED. 10 11 Dated: September 14, 2021 /s/ Gary S. Austin UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28