UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA

FORT LAUDERDALE DIVISION

CASE NO: 0:20-cv-61670-RKA

JOINT MOTION FOR TEMPORARY STAY

AND INCORPORATED MEMORANDUM OF LAW

Plaintiffs Joseph Ronga, Benidecto Fernandez, Vivian Samuel, and Annie Newton

(collectively, “Plaintiffs”) and Defendants C. R. Bard, Inc. and Bard Peripheral Vascular, Inc. 

(collectively, “Bard”) 1 (Plaintiffs and Bard are collectively referred to as the “Parties”), 

respectfully submit this Joint Motion for Temporary Stay and Incorporated Memorandum of Law. 

The Parties request that this Court stay this case and all actions in it for a period of ninety (90) 

days to permit them to pursue negotiations of a global settlement of this and all cases originally 

filed by Plaintiffs’ counsel in similar matters that were subsequently removed to the United States 

District Court for the Northern District of Texas and transferred to District Courts all over the 

country. Plaintiffs’ counsel and Defendants have settled in principle similar cases remanded from 

an MDL. The Parties believe that a stay is necessary to conserve their resources and attention so 

 1 A Joint Stipulation for Dismissal of Claims Against Defendant McKesson Corporation 

(“McKesson”) Without Prejudice, seeking to dismiss the Complaint and all causes of action 

against McKesson without prejudice, was previously filed with the Court. (Doc. 38).

JOSEPH RONGA,

Plaintiff, 

v. 

C. R. BARD, INC., BARD PERIPHERAL 

VASCULAR, INC., MCKESSON CORPORATION, 

and DOES 1 THROUGH 100 INCLUSIVE,

Defendants. 

/

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that they may attempt to resolve this case and the claims of other such plaintiffs represented by 

Plaintiffs’ counsel. Accordingly, the Parties jointly request that the Court enter a stay of discovery 

and all pretrial deadlines in this case for a period of ninety (90). 

MEMORANDUM OF LAW

Plaintiffs’ counsel represents approximately 230 plaintiffs with cases proceeding in courts 

across the country that were transferred from the In re: Bard IVC Filters Products Liability 

Litigation, MDL 2641 (the “MDL”), involving claims against Defendants for injuries they contend 

arise out of their use of Defendants’ IVC filters. The Parties have reached a settlement in principle 

concerning these cases and presently are finalizing the details of this settlement. 

Plaintiffs’ counsel in this matter also represents approximately 575 plaintiffs with cases 

proceeding in this and other courts across the country that were transferred from the United States 

District Court for the Northern District of Texas asserting similar claims against Defendants for 

injuries they contend arise out of their use of Defendants’ IVC filters. With respect to the cases 

transferred from the Northern District of Texas, such as this one, Counsel for the Parties have 

begun discussions in an attempt to achieve a global settlement of the cases and claims of the 

plaintiffs represented by Plaintiffs’ counsel. The Parties believe that their resources are best 

directed to focusing their efforts on potential settlement discussions, especially on the heels of 

successful settlement discussions relating to the cases transferred from the MDL. Thus, the 

Parties jointly move this Court to enter a stay of all discovery and pretrial deadlines in this case 

for a period of ninety (90) days.

This Court has broad discretion to stay proceedings as incidental to its power to control its 

own docket – particularly where, as here, a stay would promote judicial economy and efficiency. 

See Clinton v. Jones, 520 U.S. 681, 706 (1997); Crawford-El v. Britton, 523 U.S. 574, 598 (1998); 

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Landis v. N. Am. Co., 299 U.S. 248, 254 (1936) (recognizing that the “[p]ower to stay proceedings 

is incidental to the power inherent in every court to control disposition of causes on its docket with 

economy of time and effort for itself, for counsel, and for litigants”); Castle v. Appalachian Tech. 

Coll., 430 F. App’x 840, 841 (11th Cir. 2011) (district courts have “inherent power not governed 

by rule or statute but by the control necessarily vested in courts to manage their own affairs so as 

to achieve the orderly and expeditious disposition of cases” (citations omitted)); Johnson v. Bd. of 

Regents of the Univ. of Ga., 263 F.3d 1234, 1269 (11th Cir. 2001) (district courts have “broad 

discretion over the management of pre-trial activities, including discovery and scheduling) (citing 

Chudasama v. Mazda Motor Corp., 123 F.3d 1353, 1366 (11th Cir. 1997) (“district courts enjoy 

broad discretion in deciding how best to manage the cases before them”); United States v. 

McCutcheon, 86 F.3d 187, 190 (11th Cir. 1996) (noting the “broad discretion which is allowed a 

trial court to manage its own docket”)); Cypress Chase Condo. Ass’n “A” v. QBE Ins. Corp., No. 

10-61987-CIV, 2011 WL 1544860, at *5 (S.D. Fla. Apr. 15, 2011) (“Federal courts routinely 

exercise their power to stay a proceeding where a stay would promote judicial economy and 

efficiency.”). 

Further, Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 26(c) and 26(d) vest the Court with authority to 

limit the scope of discovery or control its sequence, upon a showing of good cause and 

reasonableness. Houston v. 7-Eleven, Inc., No. 2:14-CV-441-FTM-29CM, 2015 WL 412523, at 

*1 (M.D. Fla. Jan. 30, 2015). Facilitating the Parties’ efforts to resolve their dispute entirely 

through the finalization of settlement terms, where a settlement in principle already has been 

reached, is reasonable and constitutes good cause for granting the requested short-term stay of 

discovery. See, e.g., PNC Bank, Nat’l Ass’n v. Pharis, 2:18-CV-626-FTM-99CM, 2018 WL 

5807351, at *1 (M.D. Fla. Nov. 6, 2018) (finding good cause to stay proceeding for a period of 

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sixty (60) days appropriate pending mediation and settlement discussions); Technocable Wiring 

Specialist, Inc. v. Genesis Networks Telecom Servs., LLC, 8:16-CV-2590-T-35MAP, 2017 WL 

7311851, at *1 (M.D. Fla. June 15, 2017) (stay appropriate while parties resolve case and finalize 

settlement).

Accordingly, the Parties respectfully request that the Court enter a stay of all activity in 

this case, for a period of ninety (90) days. 

WHEREFORE, the Parties respectfully request that this Court enter a stay of all discovery 

and pretrial deadlines in this case for a period of ninety (90) days.

Dated: September 14, 2020

Respectfully submitted,

FEARS NACHAWATI, PLLC

/s/ Steven Schulte 

Steven Schulte

Texas Bar No. 24051306

Email: schulte@fnlawfirm.com

Eric Przybysz

Texas Bar No. 24102381

Email: ericp@fnlawfirm.com

Darren McDowell

Texas Bar No. 24025520

Email: dmcdowell@fnlawfirm.com

5473 Blair Road

Dallas, TX 75231

Telephone: (214) 890-0711

Facsimile: (214) 890-0712

Counsel for Plaintiffs Joseph Ronga, Vivian 

Samuel, Annie Newton, and Benidecto 

Fernandez

GREENBERG TRAURIG, P.A.

/s/ Rebecca A. Ocariz

REBECCA A. OCARIZ

Florida Bar No.: 156302

ocarizr@gtlaw.com

GREENBERG TRAURIG, P.A.

333 SE 2nd Avenue, Suite 4400

Miami, Florida 33131

Telephone: 305-579-0644

Facsimile: 305-579-0717

Counsel for Defendants C. R. Bard, Inc., 

Bard Peripheral Vascular, Inc., and 

McKesson Corporation

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CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I HEREBY CERTIFY that on September 14, 2020, I electronically filed the foregoing 

document with the Clerk of Court using CM/ECF. I also certify that the foregoing document is 

being served this day on all counsel of record identified on the below Service List in the manner 

specified, either via transmission of Notices of Electronic Filing generated by CM/ECF or in some 

other authorized manner for those counsel or parties who are not authorized to receive 

electronically Notices of Electronic Filing. 

/s/ Sabrina R. Gallo

SABRINA R. GALLO

SERVICE LIST 

Darren McDowell 

Eric Martin Przybysz

Steven Scott Schulte

Fears Nachawati, PLLC 

5473 Blair Road 

Dallas, TX 75231 

ericp@fnlawfirm.com

dmcdowell@fnlawfirm.com

schulte@fnlawfirm.com

Jordan E. Jarreau 

Melissa Dorman Matthews

Jessica Junek

Hartline Barger LLP 

8750 N Central Expressway, Suite 1600 

Dallas, TX 75231

mmatthews@hartlinebarger.com

jjarreau@hartlinebarger.com

jjunek@hartlinebarger.com

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