Late Disclosures Do Not Merit Dismissal of Insured’s Case

    The court agreed that the insured's required disclosures were untimely, but it did not support dismissal of the insured's case. Ulloa v Geovera Spec. Ins. Co., 2024 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 150279 (E.D. La. Aug. 22, 2024). 

    The insured's home suffered property damage from Hurricane Ida. The insured filed suit against its insurer, Geovera Specialty Insurance Company, alleging breach of contract and bad faith for Geovera' salleged failure to pay an insurance claim. The parties began litigating the case under the court's Case Management Order (CMO) designed specifically for cases relating to Hurricane Ida. The CMO required the parties to provide initial disclosures within forty-five days of Geovera's responsive pleading. Geovera filed its answer on December 18, 2023. Neither party exchanged initial disclosures by the February 1, 2024 deadline.

    Geovera's counsel made multiple requests for the insured's disclosures, but they were not provided by the time Geovera filed its motion to dismiss. Less than an hour after the motion was filed, the insured provided his initial disclosures. Counsel for the insured contended that the initial disclosures had been prepared but, due to an unintentional oversight by counsel, had not be forwarded to Geovera. 

    The court found there was not a clear record of delay or contumacious conduct by the insured to support Geovera's motion to dismiss. Almost immediately after Geovera filed its answer, the insured filed the initial disclosures. While the disclosures were admittedly untimely under the CMO, this alone did not support finding a clear record of delay or contumacious conduct. Accordingly, the court found the "draconian remedy" of dismissal was not appropriate at this time.