Document ID: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-caed-2_19-cv-01526/USCOURTS-caed-2_19-cv-01526-0/pdf.json

Parties Involved:
Progressive Casualty Insurance Company
Defendant
Latoya Upchurch
Plaintiff

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JOINT STIPULATION TO POSTPONE IMPLEMENTATION OF VDRP; ORDER 

62074764v.1 

TOWER LEGAL GROUP, P.C. 

Renee P. Ortega (SBN 283441) 

James A. Clark (SBN 278372) 

11335 Gold Express Drive, Suite 105 

Gold River, California 95670 

Telephone: (916) 361-6009 

Facsimile: (916) 361-6019 

Attorneys for Plaintiff 

LATOYA UPCHURCH 

SEYFARTH SHAW LLP 

Michael J. Burns (SBN 172614) 

mburns@seyfarth.com 

560 Mission Street, 31st Floor 

San Francisco, California 94105-2930 

Telephone: (415) 397-2823 

Facsimile: (415) 397-8549 

SEYFARTH SHAW LLP 

Geoffrey C. Westbrook (SBN 281961) 

gwestbrook@seyfarth.com 

Phillip J. Ebsworth (SBN 311026) 

pebsworth@seyfarth.com 

400 Capitol Mall, Suite 2350 

Sacramento, California 95814 

Telephone: (916) 448-0159 

Facsimile: (916) 558-4839 

Attorneys for Defendant 

PROGRESSIVE CASUALTY INSURANCE 

COMPANY 

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 

LATOYA UPCHURCH, 

Plaintiff, 

v. 

PROGRESSIVE CASUALTY INSURANCE 

COMPANY, an Ohio Corporation; and DOES 

1 to 25, inclusive, 

Defendants. 

Case No. 2:19-cv-01526-KJM-AC 

JOINT STIPULATION TO 

POSTPONE IMPLEMENTATION OF 

VDRP; ORDER 

Case 2:19-cv-01526-KJM-AC Document 14 Filed 03/02/20 Page 1 of 4
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JOINT STIPULATION TO POSTPONE IMPLEMENTATION OF VDRP; ORDER 

62074764v.1 

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STIPULATION 

 Plaintiff Latoya Upchurch (“Plaintiff”) and Defendant Progressive Casualty Insurance 

Company (“Defendant”) (collectively, the “Parties”), by and through their respective counsel of 

record, hereby stipulate as follows: 

 WHEREAS, on December 13, 2019, the Parties appeared at the Scheduling Conference 

held before District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller; 

 WHEREAS, on December 23, 2019, the Court referred this matter to the Court’s 

Voluntary Dispute Resolution Panel (“VDRP”) for the convening of a VDRP session in May 

2020; 

 WHEREAS, on January 24, 2020 Timothy Long was appointed as VDRP Neutral 

Attorney by the Court’s VDRP program; 

 WHEREAS, on February 6, 2020, Timothy Long was withdrawn as the VDRP Neutral 

Attorney due to a conflict of interest; 

 WHEREAS, on February 7, 2020, the VDRP program provided a further list to the 

Parties of three potential neutrals for this matter; 

 WHEREAS, the Parties have since engaged in informal discussions concerning informal 

resolution which are ongoing; 

 WHEREAS, the Parties wish to avoid unnecessary consumption of the time and 

resources of the Court’s ADR department and VDRP program; 

 IT IS HEREBY STIPULATED AND AGREED by and between Plaintiff and 

Defendant, through their respective counsel of record: 

 1. The Parties jointly request the deadline to submit a selected neutral be continued 

21 days while informal settlement discussions continue; 

 2. The Parties will agree on and select a neutral from the list provided on February 

7, 2020, by the VDRP program and notify the VDRP program of their selection on or before 

March 20, 2020; 

Case 2:19-cv-01526-KJM-AC Document 14 Filed 03/02/20 Page 2 of 4
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JOINT STIPULATION TO POSTPONE IMPLEMENTATION OF VDRP; ORDER 

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 3. If the Parties are unable to agree on a neutral, or if the Parties do not inform the 

VDRP program of their selection on or before March 20, 2020, a randomly selected neutral will 

be assigned. 

DATED: February 28, 2020 Respectfully submitted, 

TOWER LEGAL GROUP, P.C. 

By: /s/ Renee P. Ortega 

Renee P. Ortega 

James A. Clark 

Attorneys for Plaintiff 

LATOYA UPCHURCH 

DATED: February 28, 2020 SEYFARTH SHAW LLP 

By: /s/ Geoffrey C. Westbrook 

Michael J. Burns 

Geoffrey C. Westbrook 

Phillip J. Ebsworth 

Attorneys for Defendant 

PROGRESSIVE CASUALTY INSURANCE 

COMPANY 

 

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ORDER 

 Having read and consider the foregoing Stipulation of the Parties and good cause 

appearing, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED: 

1. The Parties’ deadline to submit a selected neutral is continued 21 days; 

 2. The Parties will agree on and select a neutral from the list provided on 

February 7, 2020, by the VDRP program and notify the VDRP program of their selection on or 

before March 20, 2020; 

 3. If the Parties are unable to agree on a neutral, or if the Parties do not inform the 

VDRP program of their selection on or before March 20, 2020, a randomly selected neutral will 

be assigned. 

 IT IS SO ORDERED. 

DATED: March 2, 2020. 

Case 2:19-cv-01526-KJM-AC Document 14 Filed 03/02/20 Page 4 of 4