Opinion ID: 2002697
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Whether Ruling on Judge Pasternak's Motion for Summary Judgment Should have been Deferred Until Completion of Discovery.

Text: Plaintiff urges that Iowa Rule of Civil Procedure 237(f) and our decision in Carter v. Jernigan, 227 N.W.2d 131, 135 (Iowa 1975), require that a party facing a motion for summary judgment be granted time to complete discovery prior to the court's ruling on the motion. The district court denied plaintiff's motion for such relief under rule 237(f) on the ground that his request was not supported by affidavit as required by that rule. We think this ruling was correct for the reason given by the district court and also because plaintiff did not indicate to that court nor has he suggested to this court what, if any, additional factual information was needed to resist the allegations that defendant was acting in his official capacity. The relevant facts which bear on that issue do not appear to have ever been in dispute. The surrounding circumstances appear to have been matters within plaintiff's personal knowledge. If they were not, plaintiff had from August 21 (the date the motion for summary judgment was filed) until one day prior to the October 17, 1986, hearing to discover any circumstances that show the judge was not acting in his official capacity with regard to the actions taken. We find no basis for reversing the judgment with respect to this issue.