ELISE WILLIAMS ET AL VS. CITY AND COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO ET AL

SF Superior Court - Law & Motion / Discovery Dept 301 - CGC23607295 - June 5, 2025 Hearing date: June 5, 2025 Case number: CGC23607295 Case title: ELISE WILLIAMS ET AL VS. CITY AND COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO ET AL Case Number: | | CGC23607295 | Case Title: | | ELISE WILLIAMS ET AL VS. CITY AND COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO ET AL | Court Date: | | 2025-06-05 09:00 AM | Calendar Matter: | | Notice Of Motion And Motion To Compel Defendant Apollo Imports, Inc., D.B.A. Apollo Scooters Produce Its Person(S) Most Qualified For Deposition | Rulings: | | Matter on the Law & Motion/Discovery Calendar for Thursday, June 05, 2025, line 5, PLAINTIFFS ELISE WILLIAMS, ZACHARY WILLIAMS' Motion To Compel Defendant Apollo Imports, Inc., D.B.A. Apollo Scooters Produce Its Person(S) Most Qualified For Deposition

The court denies without prejudice the motion to compel the deposition of a PMQ of defendant Apollo Imports Inc. The court is aware that a bankruptcy stay affecting a codefendant (here, Leitmotif Services LLC) does not automatically stay proceedings against those defendants not in bankruptcy. With the City's PMQ, the court weighed the risk of duplicative depositions against the right to liberal discovery, and its determination in part was guided by its judgment that the risk of duplication was attenuated by the difference between the City's defenses and Leitmotif's.

Here, the court strikes the balance differently. Apollo and Leitmotif's positions and defenses appear sufficiently similar that there is a risk of wasteful and duplicative discovery if the deposition goes forward while proceedings against Leitmotif are stayed. Moreover, there is very little time for deposition before a significant period of unavailability of counsel. (See Swallow Dec. paras. 15 and 16.) And trial, although it is approaching, is not imminent. The court therefore denies the present motion to compel Apollo's deposition without prejudice to a renewed notice after July 18. The court encourages Plaintiff to seek to lift the stay as to Leitmotif.

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