Document ID: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-caed-2_20-cv-00371/USCOURTS-caed-2_20-cv-00371-0/pdf.json

Parties Involved:
Gary Warren Hacker
Plaintiff
Unum Life Insurance Company of America
Defendant

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 

GARY WARREN HACKER, 

Plaintiff, 

v. 

UNUM LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY 

OF AMERICA, 

Defendant. 

No. 2:20-cv-00371-TLN-DMC 

AMENDED PRETRIAL SCHEDULING 

ORDER 

After reviewing the parties’ Joint Statement, the Court 

makes the following Pretrial Scheduling Order. 

I. SERVICE OF PROCESS 

All named Defendants have been served and no further service 

is permitted without leave of court, good cause having been 

shown. 

II. ADDITIONAL PARTIES/AMENDMENTS/PLEADINGS 

No joinder of parties or amendments to pleadings is 

permitted without leave of court, good cause having been shown. 

III. JURISDICTION/VENUE 

Jurisdiction is predicated upon 29 U.S.C. § 1132. 

Jurisdiction and venue are not contested. 

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IV. DISCOVERY 

 This case is governed by ERISA, therefore, all evidence for 

trial will generally be limited to the administrative record. 

The Court will allow a limited period of additional discovery in 

order to assess whether a conflict of interest affected the 

decision making process. 

 All discovery shall be completed by February 25, 2021. In 

this context, “completed” means that all discovery shall have 

been conducted so that all depositions have been taken and any 

disputes relative to discovery shall be been resolved by 

appropriate order if necessary and, where discovery has been 

ordered, the order has been obeyed. All motions to compel 

discovery must be noticed on the magistrate judge’s calendar in 

accordance with the local rules of this Court. 

 V. ADMINISTRATIVE RECORD 

Defendants shall provide Plaintiff a copy of the entire 

administrative record within sixty (60) days of the date of this 

Pretrial Scheduling Order. The filing of the written 

administrative record shall be filed not later than March 25, 

2021. 

VI. TRIAL 

A bench proceeding is set for July 19, 2021 at 9:00 a.m., 

for consideration of the parties’ cross-motions for judgment 

under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 52. Briefing of the 

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motions shall be according to the Federal Rules of Civil 

Procedure, this Court’s Local Rules and this Order. The parties 

estimate a court trial length of approximately two hours. 

VII. SETTLEMENT CONFERENCE 

The Court may set a settlement conference if the parties so 

request. In the event an early settlement conference date is 

requested, the parties shall file said request jointly, in 

writing. The request must state whether the parties waive 

disqualification, pursuant to Local Rule 270(b), before a 

settlement judge can be assigned to the case. Absent the 

parties’ affirmatively requesting that the assigned Judge or 

Magistrate Judge participate in the settlement conference AND 

waiver, pursuant to Local Rule 270(b), a settlement judge will be 

randomly assigned to the case. 

VIII. VOLUNTARY DISPUTE RESOLUTION PROGRAM 

Pursuant to Local Rule 271, parties may stipulate at any 

stage in the proceedings to refer the action, in whole or in 

part, to the Voluntary Dispute Resolution Program. 

IX. MODIFICATION OF PRETRIAL SCHEDULING ORDER 

The parties are reminded that pursuant to Rule 16(b) of the 

Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the Pretrial Scheduling Order 

shall not be modified except by leave of court upon a showing of 

good cause. Agreement by the parties pursuant to stipulation 

alone to modify the Pretrial Scheduling Order does not constitute 

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good cause. Except in extraordinary circumstances, 

unavailability of witnesses or counsel will not constitute good 

cause. 

X. OBJECTIONS TO PRETRIAL SCHEDULING ORDER 

This Pretrial Scheduling Order will become final without 

further order of the Court unless objections are filed within 

fourteen (14) calendar days of service of this Order. 

IT IS SO ORDERED. 

DATED: April 16, 2020 

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