California Expanded Metal Products Company v. James Klein ( 2021 )

1 THE HONORABLE JAMES L. ROBART SPECIAL MASTER MARK P. WALTERS 2 3 4 5 6 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON 7 AT SEATTLE 8 || CALIFORNIA EXPANDED METAL ) PRODUCTS COMPANY, a California ) 9|| corporation; and CLARKWESTERN ) Case No. 18-cv-00659-JLR DIETRICH BUILDING SYSTEMS LLC, dba _ ) 10|| CLARKDIETRICH BUILDING SYSTEMS, ) REPORT AND an Ohio limited liability company, ) RECOMMENDATION RE: 1 ) PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION TO FILE Plaintiffs, ) OVER-LENGTH BRIEFS 12 v. ) PURSUANT TO LCR 7(F) AND ) STIPULATED MOTION TO 13|| JAMES A. KLEIN, an individual; ) BIFURCATE DAMAGES BLAZEFRAME INDUSTRIES, LTD., a ) 14]| Washington company; and SAFTI-SEAL, ) 5 INC., a Washington company, ) ) Defendants. ) OP) 17 18 This matter comes before the Special Master on the following: 19 (1) Plaintiffs California Expanded Metal Products Company (““CEMCO”) and Clarkwestern Dietrich Building Systems LLC’s, d.b.a. ClarkDietrich Building Systems’ 71 (“ClarkDietrich”) (collectively “Plaintiffs”) Motion to File Over-Length Briefs Pursuant to 22 LCR 7(f) Re: Plaintiffs’ Motion for Contempt, and 23 34 (2) a stipulated motion to bifurcate issues related to damages that may be awarded 5 should the Court find any party in contempt. 26 The Special Master, having considered the the Motion to File Overlength Brief, and eport And Recommendation - | CASE NO. 18-cv-00659 LOWE GRAHAM JONES... 701 Fifth Avenue, Suite 4800 pursuant to LCR 7(f), recommends that the Court grant the motion as follows. 2 Plaintiffs’ Opening Brief 3 Defendants and Third Party’s 4 Opposition Brief Plaintiffs’ Reply Brief 5 6 The Special Master, having considered the stipulated motion to bifurcate issues related to damages, recommends as follows. 8 “[D]istrict courts, in their discretion, may bifurcate willfulness and damages issues 9 from liability issues in any given case,” and they have “the authority to try these issues 10 together or separately just as they have the authority to try all issues together at the liability 11 stage.” Robert Bosch, LLC v. Pylon Mfg. Corp., 719 F.3d 1305, 1319 (Fed. Cir. 2013). 13|| During the hearing held on June 25, 2021, for arguments on Plaintiffs’ motion to add non- 14|| parties to these contempt proceedings, the parties discussed the status of discovery related IS} to damages, should non-parties be added to the contempt proceedings. (Hearing Transcript 16 at 63:1-63:21.) During that hearing, it was mentioned that some discovery on the issue had 17 been provided, but that because non-parties were not a part of the contempt proceedings at 18 19 that time, that damages discovery from them had not been fully explored. 0 The parties and S4S, who has now been added to these contempt proceedings, 21 || submitted a stipulation to the Special Master on September 3, 2021, agreeing that “(t]he 22]|| contempt motion [currently due September 8, 2021, Dkt. #238] will not address any claim 231) of damages as supplementation of discovery related to damages will be required” and that 24 “in the event that the Court finds contempt and permits damages, the Parties jointly request 25 a schedule setting forth the deadlines for supplementation of written discovery on damages, 26 eport And Recommendation - 2 CASE NO. 18-cv-00659 LOWE GRAHAM JONES... 701 Fifth Avenue, Suite 4800 Plaintiffs’ motion for damages, Defendants’ opposition, and Plaintiffs’ reply thereto.” 2 In view of the discretion provided to district courts by the Federal Circuit to hear 3 issues related to damages separately from liability issues, Robert Bosch, 719 F.3d at 1319, 4 which the Special Master believes to be coextensive with the discretion to hear those issues 5 6 separately in contempt proceedings, and given the statements by the parties to these 7|| contempt proceedings relating to status of discovery as of June 25, 2021 (.e., that open 8 || issues remained relating to damages discovery from non-parties, including S4S), and the stipulation submitted on September 3, 2021, the Special Master recommends that the Court 10 grant the stipulated motion to bifurcate damages from liability during these contempt 1] proceedings. 12 It is recommended further that, should contempt be found, the parties to these 13 14 contempt proceedings shall be ordered to meet and confer within seven (7) days of any such 15|| order and submit a joint status report setting forth the discovery sought on damages and a proposed schedule within (14) days of any such order. If agreement on the proposed 17} schedule or discovery sought cannot be reached, the parties must clearly set forth any areas 18 of disagreement in the joint-report. 19 20 Dated this 7™ day of September, 2021 22 23 AS i “Wha [): pHi a 24 Mark P. Walters 25 Special Master 26 eport And Recommendation - 3 CASE NO. 18-cv-00659 LOWE GRAHAM JONES... 701 Fifth Avenue, Suite 4800 1 CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE 2]| certify that on August 7, 2021, a copy of this pleading was filed electronically with the 311 Clerk of the Court using the CM/ECF system. Notice of this filing will be sent to all counsel of record via email. 5 6 /s/Rischel Voigt 5 Rischel Voigt, Paralegal 8 9 10 1] 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 eport And Recommendation - 4 CASE NO. 18-cv-00659 LOWE GRAHAM JONES... 701 ame 4800