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Filing # 94172790 E-Filed 08/14/2019 03:30:20 PM
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE TWENTIETH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT
IN AND FOR CHARLOTTE COUNTY, FLORIDA
CIVIL DIVISION
CASE No.: 18-000223-CA
DANIEL SHELATZ and ALYN SHELATZ, )
)
Plaintiffs, }
)
vs. )
)
PUNTA GORDA HMA, LLC d/b/a BAYFRONT )
HEALTH PUNTA GORDA, )
)
Defendant. )
FENDANT’S, PUNT. A HMA, LLC d YFRONT H TH PUNTA
GORDA, MOTION TO CONTINUE TRIAL
Defendant, PUNTA GORDA HMA, LLC d/b/a BAYFRONT HEALTH PUNTA
GORDA, by and through the undersigned counsel and pursuant to Rule 1.460, Florida
Rules of Civil Procedure, hereby move this Honorable Court for a continuance of the
trial currently scheduled on the three-week docket beginning on September 10, 2019,
and in support thereof, states as follows:
1. This cause involves claims of negligence against the Defendant wherein
the Plaintiff contends he was injured as a result of stepping off the Defendant’s
hospital roof on or about Saturday, October 14, 2017.
2. On or about March 28, 2019, this Court entered an Order approving the
parties’ request to enter into an Amended Agreed Case Management Plan, and then
later on May 1, 2019, scheduled this cause for trial commencing on Tuesday,September 10, 2019. At that time, it was mutually believed by the parties that all
discovery could be completed in time for trial to commence in September 2019.
3. In fact, from the time of April through the date of the Pretrial Conference
before this Court on July 8, the parties were able to complete multiple depositions of
several fact witnesses who were either working with the Plaintiff on the Defendant’s
hospital roof at the time of the subject incident, or otherwise possessed knowledge
about the Plaintiff's subject incident. Moreover, as required by the parties’ Amended
Agreed Case Management Plan and Court’s Order approving same dated March 28,
2019, the parties attended Mediation on July 12, 2019, to try and resolve all issues in
the case; but ultimately, reached an impasse which was duly reported in the
Mediator’s Report filed by Donna Tisch, Esq. on July 23, 2019 (Doc #73).
4A, Despite the continued efforts and diligence of counsel for both parties
since early July, discovery in this case has not been completed; and, most importantly,
the parties have been unable to complete expert discovery ~ which, based on the
types of claims being presented to the jury, will more likely than not, require the use
of expert testimony to support their respective claims and/or defenses at trial.
5. For instance, over the past two months, the Defendants have been
unable to secure and complete the deposition of Plaintiff's liability and engineering
expert, Traci Campbell, P.E., which through no fault of the Plaintiff's attorneys, is
mostly due to Ms. Campbell’s own unavailability during the months of July and
August. To date, the only times and dates when expert Campbell’s deposition can be
Page |2 of 7completed in this matter are dates in early-to-mid September, which happen to
coincide with the time of trial.
6. Likewise, because of expert Campbell’s unforeseen and unexpected
delay, the Plaintiff's attorneys have been precluded from completing the depositions
of Defendants’ liability and engineering experts, Roy Wadding, P.E. and Juliet A.
Gridley, P.E., who will very likely offer counter and/or rebuttal opinions to those
expressed by their engineering expert, Traci Campbell, P.E. Of note, by not having all
of the parties’ expert depositions completed, both sides have been precluded from
timely filing any Daubert motions as required by the Court’s Trial Order.
7. Furthermore, to complicate matters, the litigation calendars of the
undersigned attorneys and counsel for the Plaintiff have been inordinately busy for
what is normally expected this time of year, which has unfortunately created
unintended delays in completing the necessary discovery in this case, and for being
able to comply with the deadlines outlined in the Amended Agreed Case Management
Plan. The undersigned acknowledges that having those types of scheduling delays
due to counsels’ litigation and trial calendars may not always be grounds for a
continuance, but as a practical matter, the undersigned attests that both sides have
been making every effort to reschedule and/or rearrange certain events in an attempt
to complete discovery in this case but have been unable to do so.
8. Also, as of the date of this motion, the attorneys for both sides are still
diligently working together to coordinate the remaining fact witness depositions,
Page |3 of 7depositions of all liability/engineering experts, as well as any potential causation
and/or medical experts who may need to be deposed prior to trial in this matter.
9. In fact, the undersigned attorneys and counsel for Plaintiff have even
stipulated and agreed to extend all discovery deadlines up through the date of August
31, 2019, but at this point, it has become apparent that all foregoing discovery cannot
be completed in time for the case to proceed to trial on September 10, 2019; and as
such, the Defendant respectfully requests a continuance.
10. Lastly, as a procedural and logistical matter, the Defendant’s lead trial
attorney, Louis J. La Cava, Esquire, along with the undersigned, have previously
updated! this Court with the existence of multiple “potential trial conflicts” that could
affect counsel's availability for attending this trial, beginning as early as September 3,
2019 and running through September 27, 2019 in the following other cases:
Lee Goodman v. Levent Balkir, M.D., Case No.: 15-CA-005719 Thirteenth
Judicial Circuit, in and for Hillsborough County, Florida is set for trial before
the Honorable Cheryl Thomas on the two-week trial docket commencing
September 3, 2019;
Bhavna Bavishi v. Kirti Bhargava Patel, Case No.: 2013-011397-CI, Sixth
Judicial Circuit, in and for Pinellas County, Florida is set for trial before the
Honorable Amy M. Williams SPECIALLY SET NUMBER ONE on the two-
week trial docket commencing September 9, 2019;
Shakita Ireneca Smith v. Bayfront HMA Medical Center LLC, Case No.: 16-
006764-CI, Sixth Judicial Circuit, in and for Pinellas County, Florida is set
for trial before the Honorable Thomas H. Minkoff on the one-week trial
docket commencing September 9, 2019;
* See Amended Certificate of Compliance with Rule 2.550{c) dated July 23, 2019 (Doc. #71).
Page |40f7Ronnie F. Smith v. Michael B. Saaka, M.D., Case No.: 28-2017-CA-000282,
Tenth Judicial Circuit, in and for Highlands County, Florida is set for trial
before the Honorable David V. Ward on the two-week trial docket
commencing September 9, 2019;
Victor Sabarese v. Port Charlotte HMA, LLC, Case No.: 18-000134-CA,
Twentieth Judicial Circuit, in and for Charlotte County, Florida is set for
trial before the Honorable Lisa S. Porter on the three-week trial docket
commencing September 10, 2019 through September 27, 2019;
Dominick Deloge v. William Woodard, M.D. et al, Case No.: 18-CA -001392,
Twentieth Judicial Circuit, in and for Lee County, Florida is set for trial
before the Honorable Keith R. Kyle on the three-week trial docket
commencing September 10, 2019 through September 27, 2019; and
Pamela Barrier _v. Jason Sevald, M.D. Case No.: 50-2012-CA-022822,
Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, in and for Palm Beach County, Florida is set for
trial before the Honorable Lisa S. Small SPECIALLY SET NUMBER ONE on
the eight-week trial docket commencing September 13, 2019.
11. The Defendant maintains its Motion to Continue Trial is being filed in
good faith and not for the purpose of harassment or delay, and a continuance of the
trial will not result in any undue prejudice to the Plaintiffs or their attorneys; but if
the Defendant and undersigned attorneys are compelled to attend trial on September
10, 2019, without having ample time to complete the foregoing discovery, they will
be severely prejudiced in litigating this claim.
12. Pursuant to Rule 1.460, Florida Rules of Civil Procedure, the
undersigned represents to the Court that Defendant, PUNTA GORDA HMA, LLC d/b/a
BAYFRONT HEALTH PUNTA GORDA, through its corporate representative, consents
to this Motion to Continue Trial. (Signature of the corporate representative for
Page [5 of 7Defendant agreeing to the continuance will be submitted to the Court under separate
cover and prior to any hearing on the matter).
13. Accordingly, based on the foregoing reasons, the Defendant respectfully
requests that the trial in this case be continued, and the cause removed from the
Court’s trial docket commencing on September 10, 2019.
WHEREFORE, Defendant, PUNTA GORDA HMA, LLC d/b/a BAYFRONT
HEALTH PUNTA GORDA, respectfully requests this Honorable Court enter an Order
Continuing the Trial and removing it from the September 10, 2019 trial docket, and
for any additional relief this Honorable Court deems just and proper.
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
| HEREBY CERTIFY that I electronically filed the foregoing with the Clerk of
Court on this 14th day of August, 2019, using the Florida Courts e-Filing Portal which
will send a notice of electronic filing as identified in the attached Service List.
LA CAVA & JACOBSON, P.A.
Attorneys for Defendant, Bayfront Health Punta Gorda
2590 Northbrooke Plaza Drive, Suite 307
Naples, Florida 34119
Telephone: 239.300.9679
Facsimile — : 239.734.3546
t
Florida Bar No: 0610321
LOUIS J. LA CAVA, ESQ.
Florida Bar No. 0507880
khouston@lacavajacobson.com
llacava@lacavajacobson.com
kkeyte@lacavajacobson.com
leddings@lacavajacobson.com
Page |6 of 7SERVI
Christopher D. Gray, Esq.
Hunter Higdon, Esq.
Florin Gray Bouzas Owens, LLC
16524 Pointe Village Drive, Suite 100
Lutz, FL 33558
Phone =: 727.254.5255
Fax > 727.483.7942
chris@fgbolaw.com
debbie@fgbolaw.com
hunter@fgbolaw.com
Counsel for Plaintiff
LIST
Page |7 of 7
Preview
Filing # 94172790 E-Filed 08/14/2019 03:30:20 PM IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE TWENTIETH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT IN AND FOR CHARLOTTE COUNTY, FLORIDA CIVIL DIVISION CASE No.: 18-000223-CA DANIEL SHELATZ and ALYN SHELATZ, ) ) Plaintiffs, } ) vs. ) ) PUNTA GORDA HMA, LLC d/b/a BAYFRONT ) HEALTH PUNTA GORDA, ) ) Defendant. ) FENDANT’S, PUNT. A HMA, LLC d YFRONT H TH PUNTA GORDA, MOTION TO CONTINUE TRIAL Defendant, PUNTA GORDA HMA, LLC d/b/a BAYFRONT HEALTH PUNTA GORDA, by and through the undersigned counsel and pursuant to Rule 1.460, Florida Rules of Civil Procedure, hereby move this Honorable Court for a continuance of the trial currently scheduled on the three-week docket beginning on September 10, 2019, and in support thereof, states as follows: 1. This cause involves claims of negligence against the Defendant wherein the Plaintiff contends he was injured as a result of stepping off the Defendant’s hospital roof on or about Saturday, October 14, 2017. 2. On or about March 28, 2019, this Court entered an Order approving the parties’ request to enter into an Amended Agreed Case Management Plan, and then later on May 1, 2019, scheduled this cause for trial commencing on Tuesday,September 10, 2019. At that time, it was mutually believed by the parties that all discovery could be completed in time for trial to commence in September 2019. 3. In fact, from the time of April through the date of the Pretrial Conference before this Court on July 8, the parties were able to complete multiple depositions of several fact witnesses who were either working with the Plaintiff on the Defendant’s hospital roof at the time of the subject incident, or otherwise possessed knowledge about the Plaintiff's subject incident. Moreover, as required by the parties’ Amended Agreed Case Management Plan and Court’s Order approving same dated March 28, 2019, the parties attended Mediation on July 12, 2019, to try and resolve all issues in the case; but ultimately, reached an impasse which was duly reported in the Mediator’s Report filed by Donna Tisch, Esq. on July 23, 2019 (Doc #73). 4A, Despite the continued efforts and diligence of counsel for both parties since early July, discovery in this case has not been completed; and, most importantly, the parties have been unable to complete expert discovery ~ which, based on the types of claims being presented to the jury, will more likely than not, require the use of expert testimony to support their respective claims and/or defenses at trial. 5. For instance, over the past two months, the Defendants have been unable to secure and complete the deposition of Plaintiff's liability and engineering expert, Traci Campbell, P.E., which through no fault of the Plaintiff's attorneys, is mostly due to Ms. Campbell’s own unavailability during the months of July and August. To date, the only times and dates when expert Campbell’s deposition can be Page |2 of 7completed in this matter are dates in early-to-mid September, which happen to coincide with the time of trial. 6. Likewise, because of expert Campbell’s unforeseen and unexpected delay, the Plaintiff's attorneys have been precluded from completing the depositions of Defendants’ liability and engineering experts, Roy Wadding, P.E. and Juliet A. Gridley, P.E., who will very likely offer counter and/or rebuttal opinions to those expressed by their engineering expert, Traci Campbell, P.E. Of note, by not having all of the parties’ expert depositions completed, both sides have been precluded from timely filing any Daubert motions as required by the Court’s Trial Order. 7. Furthermore, to complicate matters, the litigation calendars of the undersigned attorneys and counsel for the Plaintiff have been inordinately busy for what is normally expected this time of year, which has unfortunately created unintended delays in completing the necessary discovery in this case, and for being able to comply with the deadlines outlined in the Amended Agreed Case Management Plan. The undersigned acknowledges that having those types of scheduling delays due to counsels’ litigation and trial calendars may not always be grounds for a continuance, but as a practical matter, the undersigned attests that both sides have been making every effort to reschedule and/or rearrange certain events in an attempt to complete discovery in this case but have been unable to do so. 8. Also, as of the date of this motion, the attorneys for both sides are still diligently working together to coordinate the remaining fact witness depositions, Page |3 of 7depositions of all liability/engineering experts, as well as any potential causation and/or medical experts who may need to be deposed prior to trial in this matter. 9. In fact, the undersigned attorneys and counsel for Plaintiff have even stipulated and agreed to extend all discovery deadlines up through the date of August 31, 2019, but at this point, it has become apparent that all foregoing discovery cannot be completed in time for the case to proceed to trial on September 10, 2019; and as such, the Defendant respectfully requests a continuance. 10. Lastly, as a procedural and logistical matter, the Defendant’s lead trial attorney, Louis J. La Cava, Esquire, along with the undersigned, have previously updated! this Court with the existence of multiple “potential trial conflicts” that could affect counsel's availability for attending this trial, beginning as early as September 3, 2019 and running through September 27, 2019 in the following other cases: Lee Goodman v. Levent Balkir, M.D., Case No.: 15-CA-005719 Thirteenth Judicial Circuit, in and for Hillsborough County, Florida is set for trial before the Honorable Cheryl Thomas on the two-week trial docket commencing September 3, 2019; Bhavna Bavishi v. Kirti Bhargava Patel, Case No.: 2013-011397-CI, Sixth Judicial Circuit, in and for Pinellas County, Florida is set for trial before the Honorable Amy M. Williams SPECIALLY SET NUMBER ONE on the two- week trial docket commencing September 9, 2019; Shakita Ireneca Smith v. Bayfront HMA Medical Center LLC, Case No.: 16- 006764-CI, Sixth Judicial Circuit, in and for Pinellas County, Florida is set for trial before the Honorable Thomas H. Minkoff on the one-week trial docket commencing September 9, 2019; * See Amended Certificate of Compliance with Rule 2.550{c) dated July 23, 2019 (Doc. #71). Page |40f7Ronnie F. Smith v. Michael B. Saaka, M.D., Case No.: 28-2017-CA-000282, Tenth Judicial Circuit, in and for Highlands County, Florida is set for trial before the Honorable David V. Ward on the two-week trial docket commencing September 9, 2019; Victor Sabarese v. Port Charlotte HMA, LLC, Case No.: 18-000134-CA, Twentieth Judicial Circuit, in and for Charlotte County, Florida is set for trial before the Honorable Lisa S. Porter on the three-week trial docket commencing September 10, 2019 through September 27, 2019; Dominick Deloge v. William Woodard, M.D. et al, Case No.: 18-CA -001392, Twentieth Judicial Circuit, in and for Lee County, Florida is set for trial before the Honorable Keith R. Kyle on the three-week trial docket commencing September 10, 2019 through September 27, 2019; and Pamela Barrier _v. Jason Sevald, M.D. Case No.: 50-2012-CA-022822, Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, in and for Palm Beach County, Florida is set for trial before the Honorable Lisa S. Small SPECIALLY SET NUMBER ONE on the eight-week trial docket commencing September 13, 2019. 11. The Defendant maintains its Motion to Continue Trial is being filed in good faith and not for the purpose of harassment or delay, and a continuance of the trial will not result in any undue prejudice to the Plaintiffs or their attorneys; but if the Defendant and undersigned attorneys are compelled to attend trial on September 10, 2019, without having ample time to complete the foregoing discovery, they will be severely prejudiced in litigating this claim. 12. Pursuant to Rule 1.460, Florida Rules of Civil Procedure, the undersigned represents to the Court that Defendant, PUNTA GORDA HMA, LLC d/b/a BAYFRONT HEALTH PUNTA GORDA, through its corporate representative, consents to this Motion to Continue Trial. (Signature of the corporate representative for Page [5 of 7Defendant agreeing to the continuance will be submitted to the Court under separate cover and prior to any hearing on the matter). 13. Accordingly, based on the foregoing reasons, the Defendant respectfully requests that the trial in this case be continued, and the cause removed from the Court’s trial docket commencing on September 10, 2019. WHEREFORE, Defendant, PUNTA GORDA HMA, LLC d/b/a BAYFRONT HEALTH PUNTA GORDA, respectfully requests this Honorable Court enter an Order Continuing the Trial and removing it from the September 10, 2019 trial docket, and for any additional relief this Honorable Court deems just and proper. CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE | HEREBY CERTIFY that I electronically filed the foregoing with the Clerk of Court on this 14th day of August, 2019, using the Florida Courts e-Filing Portal which will send a notice of electronic filing as identified in the attached Service List. LA CAVA & JACOBSON, P.A. Attorneys for Defendant, Bayfront Health Punta Gorda 2590 Northbrooke Plaza Drive, Suite 307 Naples, Florida 34119 Telephone: 239.300.9679 Facsimile — : 239.734.3546 t Florida Bar No: 0610321 LOUIS J. LA CAVA, ESQ. Florida Bar No. 0507880 khouston@lacavajacobson.com llacava@lacavajacobson.com kkeyte@lacavajacobson.com leddings@lacavajacobson.com Page |6 of 7SERVI Christopher D. Gray, Esq. Hunter Higdon, Esq. Florin Gray Bouzas Owens, LLC 16524 Pointe Village Drive, Suite 100 Lutz, FL 33558 Phone =: 727.254.5255 Fax > 727.483.7942 chris@fgbolaw.com debbie@fgbolaw.com hunter@fgbolaw.com Counsel for Plaintiff LIST Page |7 of 7