EFTA00597629.pdf

1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIFTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT, IN AND FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA CASE NO.:502009CA040800X JEFFREY EPSTEIN, Plaintiff, vs. SCOTT ROTHSTEIN, individually, BRADLEY J. EDWARDS, individually, and MI individually, ORIGINAL Defendants. West Palm Beach, Florida August 10, 2015 9:50 a.m. - 10:05 a.m. The above-styled cause came on for hearing before the Honorable DONALD HAFELE, Presiding Judge, at the Palm Beach County Courthouse, West Palm Beach, Palm Beach County, Florida, on the 10th day of August, 2015. APPEARANCES: For The Plaintiff: SEARCY DENNEY SCAROLA, BARNHART & SHIPLEY 2139 Palm Beach Lakes Blvd. West Palm Beach, FL 33409 By JACK SCAROLA, ESQUIRE For The Defendants: WILLIAM CHESTER BREWER, ESQUIRE 250 S. Australian Avenue, Ste 1400 West Palm Beach, FL 33401 By WILLIAM CHESTER BREWER, ESQUIRE PALM BEACH REPORTING SERVICE, INC. (561) 471-2995 EFTA00597629 2 10 11 12 13 1 4 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 (Whereupon, the following proceedings were had.) MR. SCAROLA: Good morning, Your Honor. THE COURT: Hi, Gentlemen, how are you? MR. SCAROLA: Pine. Thank you, sir. MR. BREWER: Good morning, Your Honor. MR. SCAROLA: Your Honor, we're here on a motion to compel disclosure regarding fee claim in this case. Your Honor may recall that you entered an order a little bit more than six months ago entitling Mr. Epstein -- yes, Mr. Epstein to recover fees against Bradley Edwards following Your Honor's entry of a motion for summary judgment in this case. We have been attempting, since the entry of that order, to determine the amount of the fee claim. While we have been told generally that it is a fee claim and that is in the seven figure range, our efforts to obtain discovery as to where within the seven figure range it is have been unsuccessful. We've been informed that Jay White was retained as an expert in this case. According to information provided, he has devoted at least 20 hours to the PALM BEACH REPORTING SERVICE, INC. (561) 471-2995 EFTA00597630 12 73 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 analysis of this claim. Most recently, we got unexecuted answers to interrogatories back that indicate that Mr. White has not yet arrived at an opinion with regard to the amount of the claim. This is a matter that was set on Your Honor's trial calendar currently. We've been trying to get this information for quite some time. We have a September 1 mediation that has been ordered with regard to this. I've asked to either have complete answers to interrogatories, a report from Mr. White, or an opportunity to depose Mr. White sometime between now and the 1st of September. I'm told he's unavailable, including no availability evenings and weekends. And I offered to take the discovery in the evening and on the weekend if necessary in order to get an opinion or just to get a report from him. I just want to know what the number is. THE COURT: Yes, sir. MR. BREWER: There are so many inaccuracies in what you just heard that I'm really, frankly, taken aback. First of all, if we did not provide them information, that's the booklet of attorney's fee records that have PALM BEACH REPORTING SERVICE, INC. (561) 471-2995 EFTA00597631 4 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 been provided to Mr. Scarola. We are set for mediation, that is correct. To say that we have stated that Mr. White is not available nights and weekends -- if I might approach? THE COURT: Give a copy to Mr. Scarola. MR. BREWER: Certainly. THE COURT: Okay. MR. BREWER: Additionally, Your Honor, I'm really almost at a loss for words from what I just heard. THE COURT: Relax. It's not worth a hear: attack. MR. BREWER: Okay. We have had no response to that letter or e-mail. Those dates are still open. Mr. White is very, very busy this month. He's got a two-week construction defect case. He's the expert in a doctor/firm split up case, and he's got two JQC trials that he's having to deal with. And we were trying to get this deposition pushed back into September because of his schedule. THE COURT: All right. Well -- MR. BREWER: And so we have now gone back and said, you know, Mr. Scarola is quite adamant, could you give us some dates, please. PALM BEACH REPORTING SERVICE, INC. (561) 471-2995 EFTA00597632 10 11 12 13 lc 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 And we've given dates and we've had no response. THE COURT: August 26th or the 27th? MR. SCAROLA: Your Honor, what this message says is Jay White doesn't have final opinions, and I've told him to stop working on this matter. I'm not going to take a deposition only to have him say, I don't have a final opinion in this matter. What I need is for purposes of this mediation to know what the amount of the claim is. That's all I've been asking for. THE COURT: Well, that's what I'm willing to do. / mean, you know, you pushed mediation. We've now had an opinion of the 4th District Court of Appeal that specifically and unequivocally created a conflict with the 3rd District Court of Appeal's opinions upon which I and Judge Blanc relied upon; Judge Blanc in the case that the 4th decided, me in this case, which we've gone through at length in both writing and orally as far as the court was concerned in terms of -- that case being the 3rd District Court of Appeal case citing extensively from the leading cases from the PALM BEACH REPORTING SERVICE, INC. (561) 471-2995 EFTA00597633 6 1 2 3 4 5 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 Florida Supreme Court on the motion of prosecution issue. But irrespective of that, Mr. Brewer, you and your client have been pushing for mediation. I have been stedfast in requiring mediation. Now with respect to that opinion from the 4th have required mediation on all of the matters relating to the case, including the attorney's fee claim and seeing where you-all stood now that the 4th has spoken on the issue. And again, while there may be distinguishing characteristics between the case from the 4th and the case from the 3rd, I'm not in a position to make that call. The 4th District Court of Appeal is in a position to do that. But I am going to require that Mr. White be deposed as long as Mr. Scarola's available on August 26th, to be deposed on that date with full opinions within five days -- or strike that. At least five days prior to said deposition, and it will be business days. He shall also provide Mr. Scarola with a summary of his final opinions so that Mr. Scarola can tie together the hundred or so pages that have been provided to him by way of the binder that PALM BEACH REPORTING SERVICE, INC. (561) 471-2995 EFTA00597634 7 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 has been shown to me just as a matter of cursory showing today, and I'm only estimating the number of pages. It may be more. And be prepared to be able to at least have that information and armed with that information to be able to synthesize those documents within a reasonable time. That will be at least five days prior -- business days prior to the August 26th date that the deposition will be set. So if you guys would kindly sit down and prepare this in accordance with the court's order, I would appreciate that. Thank you very much. (Thereupon, the above proceedings were concluded at 10:05 a.m.) PALM BEACH REPORTING SERVICE, INC. (561) 471-2995 EFTA00597635 8 COURT CERTIFICATE 2 3 STATE OF FLORIDA SS COUNTY OF PALM BEACH ) I, TERRI. CAMIZZI, Registered Professional 1C 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 Reporter, certify that I was authorized to and did stenographically report the foregoing proceedings and that the transcript is a true record of my stenographic notes. Dated this 17th day of August, 2015. TERRI CAMIZZI, R PALM BEACH REPORTING SERVICE, INC. (561) 471-2995 EFTA00597636