Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-cand-3_06-cv-03524/USCOURTS-cand-3_06-cv-03524-5/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 110
Nature of Suit: Insurance
Cause of Action: 28:1332 Diversity-Insurance Contract

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United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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C-06-3524 DISCOVERY ORDER Page 1 of 3

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

IAN HUNTER, 

Plaintiff,

v.

OHIO INDEMNITY COMPANY,

Defendant.

________________________________/

No. C 06-3524 JSW (JL)

ORDER DENYING REQUEST TO

COMPEL DEPOSITION (Docket # 44)

Introduction

All discovery in this case has been referred by the district court (Hon. Jeffrey S.

White) as provided by 28 U.S.C. §636(b) and Civil Local Rule 73. This Court received the

parties’ joint letter brief regarding a discovery dispute over the deposition of Betsy Jansen,

a non-party unpaid Trustee of Plaintiff Unemployment Insurance Services (“UST”).

Background

UST provides services to non-profit agencies to administer and pay their

unemployment insurance liabilities in compliance with various states’ laws. Defendant Ohio

Indemnity Company provided “stop-loss” insurance coverage to UST. UST claims Ohio

Indemnity wrongfully denied or reduced coverage when UST had an unusually large

number of claims for which excess coverage was needed in 2002 and 2003.

The Discovery Dispute

Case 3:06-cv-03524-JSW Document 47 Filed 09/21/07 Page 1 of 3
United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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C-06-3524 DISCOVERY ORDER Page 2 of 3

Defendant asks this Court to order the deposition of Betsy Jansen, one of Plaintiff’s

trustees in this insurance coverage case solely on the basis that she is a Chartered

Property and Casualty Underwriter (“CPCU”). Defendant theorizes that “she is the trustee

most qualified to testify regarding the issues raised by plaintiff’s first amended complaint. . .

and therefore the trustee who is most likely to be able to give meaningful testimony

regarding the issues in this case.” Defendant is willing to depose her in or near Denver,

Colorado, where she lives.

Ms. Jansen requests for personal reasons that she not be deposed in this matter.

Her husband has cancer and is undergoing chemotherapy. Being put through a deposition

at this time would be stressful to both of them. She mentions that another Trustee, Ian

Hunter, has agreed to be deposed in this case.

Ms. Jansen testifies that she is a volunteer trustee of UST. She admits that she is

generally aware that Ohio Indemnity provided stop-loss insurance to UST and its

predecessor companies in the late 1990's and early 2000's. However, she did not review

the texts of the policies. She was not involved in any of the negotiations for the policies and

is familiar with them only to the extent that Holly Smith Jones, the Executive Director of

UST, or Betsey Brewer, an insurance broker, may have reported on them at or in advance

of a trustee meeting. She has not communicated directly with anyone from Ohio Indemnity

concerning the stop-loss policies or its denial of coverage. Outside the context of

confidential communications with UST’s counsel concerning Ohio Indemnity’s denial of

coverage, she has no personal knowledge concerning issues in this case.

Although she is certified by the American Institute for CPCU as a Chartered Property

and Casualty Underwriter, she does not intend to provide any testimony at trial, and in

particular will not testify as an expert on any issue, including the 2002 or 2003 stop-loss

claims or Ohio Indemnity’s contentions.

Analysis and Conclusion

Rule 26(b)(2)(B) authorizes a court to limit discovery if it is obtainable from another

source that is less burdensome or if the burden outweighs its likely benefit. In the case at

Case 3:06-cv-03524-JSW Document 47 Filed 09/21/07 Page 2 of 3
United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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C-06-3524 DISCOVERY ORDER Page 3 of 3

bar, Trustee Ian Hunter, the named plaintiff along with UST, has agreed to be deposed and

the burden of a deposition on Ms. Jansen, who has virtually no knowledge of any issues

specific to the coverage at issue, and is caring for a spouse with a life-threatening illness,

would be inhumane as well as unproductive. Accordingly, the motion to compel Ms.

Jansen’s deposition is denied.

IT IS SO ORDERED. 

DATED: September 21, 2007

__________________________________

 JAMES LARSON

 Chief Magistrate Judge

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