Reina Gonzalez Sanctions Against Randy Walters

1
Plaintiffs' Motion to Compel

June 7, 2018
1 REPORTER'S RECORD
VOLUME 1 OF 1 VOLUME
2 TRIAL COURT CAUSE NO. DC-17-17591-A
3 SALVADOR ROMERO, REBECCA ) IN THE DISTRICT COURT
"REBECA" ROMERO, AND TATIANA )
4 ROMERO, )
PLAINTIFFS, )
5 )
vs. ) DALLAS COUNTY, TEXAS
6 )
BONFILIO MARTINEZ NAVARRO, )
7 DEFENDANT. ) 14TH JUDICIAL DISTRICT
8
9
10 _____________________________________________
11 PLAINTIFFS' MOTION TO COMPEL
_____________________________________________
12
13
14 On the 7th day of June, 2018, the following
15 proceedings came on to be held in the above-titled and
16 numbered cause before the Honorable Eric V. Moyé, Judge
17 Presiding, held in Dallas, Dallas County, Texas.
18 Proceedings reported by computerized stenotype
19 machine.
20 DIANE L. ROBERT, CSR, RPR
TEXAS CSR NO. 2179
21 Expiration Date: 12/31/2018
Official Court Reporter of the 14th
22 Judicial District Court
Dallas County, Texas
23 600 Commerce Street, Dallas, Tx 75202
214-653-7298
24
25
DIANE L. ROBERT
14TH JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT * DALLAS COUNTY, TEXAS
2
June 7, 2018
1 APPEARANCES
2
3 REPRESENTING PLAINTIFFS:
4 MS. REINA GONZALEZ
SBOT NO.: 24083089
5 GONZALEZ LAW GROUP
10000 N. Central Expressway, Suite 400
6 Dallas, Texas 75231
Telephone: (214) 222-9096
7 Facsimile: (972) 2946404
Email: RGonzalez@DallasTrialLaw.com
8
9 MR. SEAN R. COX
SBOT NO. 24031980
10 LAW OFFICES OF SEAN R. COX
P.O. Box 130864
Telephone: 214.500.9280
12 Facsimile: 844.501.8688
Email: Scox@coxappellate.com
13
- and -
14
15 REPRESENTING DEFENDANT:
16 MR. MICHAEL TWINING
SBOT NO. 24098530
17 WALTERS, BALIDO & CRAIN, L.L.P.
2500 Tanglewilde
18 Suite 250
Houston, Texas 77063
19 Telephone: 713.335.0285
Email: michael.twining@wbclawfirm.com
20
21
22
23
24
25
DIANE L. ROBERT
3
June 7, 2018
1 VOLUME 1
2 PLAINTIFFS' MOTION TO COMPEL
3 June 7, 2018
4 PAGE VOL.
Appearances .......................................4 1
5
Proceedings .......................................4 1
6
Plaintiffs' Motion to Compel Discovery Response ...4 1
7
Argument by Ms. Gonzalez ..........................4 1
8
Response by Mr. Twining ...........................5 1
9
Response by Ms. Gonzalez ..........................9 1
10
Disclosures .......................................9 1
11
Court's Ruling ...................................10 1
12
Response by Mr. Twining ..........................10 1
13
Court's Ruling ...................................12 1
14
Interrogatories ..................................13 1
15
Court's Ruling ...................................13 1
16
Requests for Production ..........................14 1
17
Court's Ruling ...................................14 1
18
Attorneys' Fees ..................................14 1
19
Court's Ruling ...................................15 1
20
Court's Ruling ...................................17 1
21
Adjournment .....................................18 1
22
Reporter's Certificate ...........................19 1
23
24
25
DIANE L. ROBERT
4
June 7, 2018
1 P R O C E E D I N G S
2 (Open Court; Proceedings commenced at 10:31 a.m.)
3 THE COURT: We are on the record in
4 17-17591, Romero versus Navarro. May I have
10:31:45 5 announcements, please?
6 MS. GONZALEZ: Reina Gonzalez for Salvador
7 Romero, Rebecca Romero and Tatiana Romero.
8 MR. COX: Sean Cox also for the Romeros.
9 MR. TWINING: Michael Twining for
10:31:57 10 Defendant Bonfilio Navarro.
11 THE COURT: Last name is?
12 MR. TWINING: Twining. T-W-I-N-I-N-G.
13 THE COURT: All right. We've got
14 Plaintiffs' Motion to Compel Discovery Responses. I'll
10:32:12 15 hear from you briefly, Ms. Gonzalez.
16 MS. GONZALEZ: Yes, Your Honor. We have
17 been able to narrow our requests. Defendant provided a
18 response and supplemental discovery --
19 THE COURT: When?
10:32:24 20 MS. GONZALEZ: At 6:00 p.m. last night.
21 But we have -- We have -- We went through
22 it and we have been able to trim it down.
23 Discovery was served on Defendant on
24 January 20th -- I'm sorry. -- January 10th of this
10:32:40 25 year. It was due on March 1st. I e-mailed defense
DIANE L. ROBERT
5
June 7, 2018
10:32:42 1 counsel I think on March 10th asking where their

2 discovery was. It took this Motion to Compel for them
3 to give us any discovery or to answer for the first
4 time.
10:32:52 5 THE COURT: Right.
6 MS. GONZALEZ: They have waived all
7 objections and it is our argument that they have waived
8 all privileges because we asked for a privilege log in
9 our Motion to Compel.
10:33:03 10 THE COURT: No privilege log was provided?
11 MS. GONZALEZ: Correct. They are -- I
12 think it's over ten days late, but they are standing by
13 their privilege of self-incrimination under the Fifth
14 Amendment.
10:33:14 15 THE COURT: Uh-huh.
16 Mr. Twining, when I went through this I
17 didn't find a single interrogatory to which you did not
18 interpose the Fifth -- the privilege under the Fifth
19 Amendment; is that right?
10:33:32 20 MR. TWINING: Your Honor, we did
21 supplement last night --
22 THE COURT: Counsel, that's not what I
23 asked you. I want you to answer the question that I
24 pose.
10:33:38 25 I had done my preparation before 6:00
DIANE L. ROBERT
6
June 7, 2018
10:33:41 1 o'clock last night, and it appeared to me that there was

2 not a single interrogatory to which you did not
3 interpose an objection based on the Fifth Amendment. Is
4 that correct?
10:33:53 5 MR. TWINING: I believe on the original
6 responses -- I'm uncomfortable saying for sure as to all
7 24 interrogatories.
8 THE COURT: Well, if you want to take a
9 moment and go through them, you go right ahead; --
10:34:05 10 Have a seat, Counsel.
11 -- I'll wait on you.
12 Did you seek attorney's fees in your
13 petition --
14 MS. GONZALEZ: Yes, Your Honor, we did.
10:34:32 15 THE COURT: -- in your motion?
16 Thank you.
17 MR. TWINING: That's correct, Your Honor.
18 THE COURT: And it appears to me the same
19 is true for your responses to Request For Production.
10:35:05 20 MR. TWINING: Your Honor, I'll take the
21 Court's word for it, if that's what your review showed.
22 THE COURT: There's not a single
23 interrogatory or -- there's not a single discovery
24 request that you answered without objection, is there?
10:35:18 25 MR. TWINING: Actually, Your Honor,
DIANE L. ROBERT
7
June 7, 2018
10:35:21 1 Requests for Disclosure we did answer. We have since --

2 THE COURT: I'm not talking about -- And
3 I'm not talking about what you've done since and don't
4 tell me that again, please.
10:35:30 5 MR. TWINING: Yes, sir.
6 THE COURT: I'm not talking about
7 disclosures; I'm talking about your -- the discovery
8 that was propounded to you other than disclosures. Is
9 that a correct statement?
10:35:41 10 MR. TWINING: Whether or not we
11 asserted --
12 THE COURT: That you interposed an
13 objection to each and every request.
14 MR. TWINING: With the distinction that
10:35:47 15 privilege is not necessarily an objection, yes, Your
16 Honor, I did --
17 THE COURT: Counsel, you should have
18 figured out by now that this is not the time for you to
19 try to parse words with me.
10:35:58 20 MR. TWINING: I'm not trying to, Your
21 Honor, --
22 THE COURT: Well, you certainly -- you
23 certainly appear to.
24 MR. TWINING: I'm sorry.
10:36:02 25 THE COURT: And that is not effective
DIANE L. ROBERT
8
June 7, 2018
10:36:04 1 advocacy at this point in time. One can make an

2 argument that it's never effective advocacy.
3 Tell me which are the -- which of the --
4 What happens, Mr. Twining, just so that
10:36:30 5 you'll have a better feel for this in the future, when I
6 look at your discovery responses and I see that you have
7 not made a single response that doesn't interpose an
8 objection, you're stepping into the batter's box with
9 two strikes. You have dug yourself into a hole that is
10:36:54 10 exceedingly hard for you to dig your way out of.
11 And the typical response, and I think this
12 is typical of my -- not just myself but all of my
13 colleagues, is to let you stand on all of your
14 objections and then invite the Plaintiff or the opposing
10:37:11 15 party to file a dispositive motion because when you
16 stand on your objections I'll enter a 215 sanction that
17 prohibits you from using any information that you should
18 have disclosed at any further pleading -- in any further
19 pleading or at any further hearing.
10:37:32 20 And I suspect that if Ms. Gonzalez had
21 filed -- files a no-evidence motion that all of a sudden
22 you will -- you will be providing a boatload of
23 information that should have been properly provided now.
24 This is not the way that you should
10:37:51 25 practice law.
DIANE L. ROBERT
9
June 7, 2018
10:38:03 1 Tell me what issues are still in dispute,

2 Ms. Gonzalez.
3 MS. GONZALEZ: Your Honor, if I may begin
4 with disclosures, our order lists disclosures first.
10:38:12 5 THE COURT: That's fine.
6 MS. GONZALEZ: Your Honor, may we provide
7 the order that we have so you can follow along as to
8 what we are requesting?
9 THE COURT: Well, you may; I've got in
10:38:23 10 mind what I want to do.
11 MS. GONZALEZ: Okay.
12 MR. COX: Your Honor, if I may approach.
13 THE BAILIFF: Mr. Cox. Thank you, sir.
14 Your Honor.
10:38:35 15 (Document handed to the Court.)
16 THE COURT: Thank you.
17 Ms. Gonzalez, have you come to an
18 agreement with regard to any of the disclosures?
19 MS. GONZALEZ: Yes, Your Honor.
10:38:48 20 THE COURT: Which ones?
21 MS. GONZALEZ: (a), (b), (c), (d).
22 THE COURT: Okay. Your order does not
23 have disclosures -- Your order only references (e), (h),
24 (i), and (l).
10:39:04 25 MS. GONZALEZ: Yes, Your Honor. We
DIANE L. ROBERT
10
June 7, 2018
10:39:04 1 withdrew those from the written order, leaving only the
2 ones in dispute.
3 THE COURT: Okay. (e)?
4 MS. GONZALEZ: Yes, (e) is persons who
10:39:13 5 have knowledge of relevant facts. They list the
6 parties --
7 THE COURT: Uh-huh.
8 MS. GONZALEZ: -- and then a former party
9 who was the co-owner of the vehicle and lists nobody
10:39:25 10 else and then plead the Fifth.
11 THE COURT: Okay. I'm going to let them
12 stand on their objection, and I'm going to enter a 215
13 order at the end of this hearing.
14 MS. GONZALEZ: Okay, Your Honor.
10:39:37 15 THE COURT: I'm going to let them stand on
16 all of their objections, (e), (h), (i) and (j).
17 MS. GONZALEZ: And (l). I'm sorry --
18 THE COURT: I'm sorry. That is an "L"
19 that is not a "J". That is an "L".
10:39:58 20 MR. TWINING: If I may, Your Honor, we
21 actually withdrew our privilege assertion as to
22 194.2(h).
23 THE COURT: When did you withdraw that?
24 MR. TWINING: Last evening, Your Honor. I
10:40:07 25 don't believe it was at 6:00, I be- -- not that it
DIANE L. ROBERT
11
June 7, 2018
10:40:09 1 matters, but I believe it was earlier.

2 THE COURT: Yeah, since it doesn't matter
3 there's no sense in your telling me that, is there?
4 MR. TWINING: No, Your Honor.
10:40:18 5 THE COURT: Is this your work or is this
6 somebody else's? Should I be chewing on Brother
7 Walters' leg rather than yours?
8 MR. TWINING: I would rather you chew on
9 my leg, Your Honor.
10:40:27 10 THE COURT: Is this your work? Was it
11 your determination to make these objections?
12 MR. TWINING: I don't recall, Your Honor.
13 That's --
14 THE COURT: Counsel, wait a minute now,
10:40:35 15 wait a minute. That's not an acceptable answer.
16 Take a minute and contemplate the Lawyer's
17 Creed which requires you to observe and perform your
18 duty of candor with this Court.
19 For you to tell me that you do not recall
10:40:55 20 whether you did this or not, it doesn't strain
21 credibility, it eviscerates it. So let's think about
22 this for a minute.
23 Is this your work product or is this the
24 work product of somebody else at your firm?
10:41:13 25 MR. TWINING: I'm the associate who's
DIANE L. ROBERT
12
June 7, 2018
10:41:15 1 working --
2 THE COURT: I didn't ask you if you're the
3 associate, sir. And that's the last time that I want
4 you to not answer the question that I pose to you and
10:41:25 5 answer another question. Do you understand what I'm
6 saying?
7 MR. TWINING: I do, Your Honor.
8 THE COURT: Is this your work or is this
9 somebody else's work?
10:41:31 10 MR. TWINING: It's a combination of my
11 work and Randy Walters' work.
12 THE COURT: Give me a percentage. Which
13 is which?
14 MR. TWINING: I type it up, Randy signs
10:41:40 15 off.
16 THE COURT: When you say you "type it up",
17 do you -- was it your idea to create the -- to come up
18 with all of these -- with the same objection to each of
19 these requests? Was it your idea or was this
10:41:54 20 Mr. Walters'?
21 MR. TWINING: It's a collaborative effort,
22 Your Honor, it's ...
23 THE COURT: Have a seat.
24 I specifically find that you are not being
10:42:08 25 candid with the Court, and I find that to be troubling.
DIANE L. ROBERT
13
June 7, 2018
10:42:12 1 And as you are not being candid with the Court, there's
2 probably not very much that you can say that is going to
3 be effective. You're violating your duty of candor.
4 You're violating the Texas Lawyer's Creed.
10:42:34 5 MS. GONZALEZ: Your Honor, if I may move
6 on to interrogatories?
7 THE COURT: Yes, ma'am, you may.
8 MS. GONZALEZ: Interrogatories 3 -- 2, 3,
9 4 and 5.
10:42:45 10 THE COURT: Have not been answered?
11 MS. GONZALEZ: Correct. As well as 8, 12,
12 and 18.
13 (Clarification by the reporter.)
14 MS. GONZALEZ: 8, coma, 12, coma, 18.
10:42:58 15 THE COURT: 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 12.
16 MS. GONZALEZ: We have a copy of the
17 motion --
18 THE COURT: I've got it here, Counsel.
19 MS. GONZALEZ: Okay.
10:43:56 20 THE COURT: The notion that identifying
21 conversations that the Defendant had with the Plaintiff
22 is somehow violative of the Fifth Amendment is on its
23 face absurd. As is identification of any felony or
24 crime involving moral turpitude. As is the identity of
10:44:57 25 anyone who might possess rebuttable evidence. As is the
DIANE L. ROBERT
14
June 7, 2018
10:45:08 1 identification of any consulting expert.

2 The Court finds that these interrogatory
3 answers were not made in good faith, were made for the
4 purpose of thwarting the discovery process and should be
10:45:24 5 and are sanctionable.
6 Let's move on to your disclosures.
7 MS. GONZALEZ: On production?
8 THE COURT: I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
9 Production, yes. I'm looking at your production.
10:45:41 10 MS. GONZALEZ: Production Requests 2, 3,
11 4, 5, 6 and 7, as well as 10, 11, 12, 15, and 20.
12 THE COURT: The Court finds that at a
13 minimum the Plaintiff -- the Defendant should be
14 sanctioned pursuant to Rule 215.2(4). This Court will
10:48:00 15 enter an order refusing to permit the Defendant to
16 support or oppose claims or defenses by and through
17 prohibiting the Defendant from introducing into evidence
18 any evidence which would have proper -- would have been
19 provided subject to a good faith response to the
10:48:29 20 discovery.
21 MS. GONZALEZ: Thank you, Your Honor.
22 THE COURT: Tell me what else you want.
23 MS. GONZALEZ: We are requesting
24 attorneys' fees.
10:48:39 25 THE COURT: Tell me how much you want in
DIANE L. ROBERT
15
June 7, 2018
10:48:40 1 fees.
2 MS. GONZALEZ: Our motion has the amount
3 of 762 with 50 cents for both trial and appellate
4 counsel. $762.50.
10:48:50 5 THE COURT: Tell me what that entails.
6 MS. GONZALEZ: The drafting of the motion.
7 I would -- My rate is 225 an hour. Sean Cox's rate is
8 $300 an hour. We reduced the drafting of this motion,
9 the cost, at $500, and attended -- for this hearing and
10:49:10 10 in preparation and attendance of this hearing to
11 $262.50.
12 THE COURT: The Court finds that the fees
13 are reasonable and necessary for the advancement of this
14 motion.
10:49:46 15 I am really, really unhappy with the
16 performance of Defense Counsel in this matter. The
17 reason that we have discovery --
18 Have a seat.
19 The reason that we have discovery is so
10:50:03 20 that you can be a better lawyer for your client. The
21 only way that you can be a good lawyer for your client
22 is to be able to advise your client of what is likely to
23 happen in a case. The only way you can do that is when
24 you have all of the information that the other side has.
10:50:24 25 The rules do not permit one to hide the
DIANE L. ROBERT
16
June 7, 2018
10:50:27 1 ball. You can't litigate effectively like that. When

2 you do that you are acting in bad faith.
3 Your firm is too good a firm to do things
4 like this. I've had lawyers in your firm here before
10:50:47 5 and they're among the best lawyers we've got in town.
6 And what possesses you to comport yourself in this
7 manner now is just beyond me, and it is incredibly
8 dissatisfying.
9 If you ever go to a CLE where judges speak
10:51:11 10 about what they do and do not like, this is Exhibit A as
11 to what judges do not like.
12 A set of interrogatories is not -- A set
13 of any discovery is not a test for you to see how many
14 ways you can object to a request.
10:51:31 15 This is the way law was practiced back in
16 the late 1980s and nobody liked practicing law this way.
17 And I think collectively we will all do everything we
18 can to make sure that we do not revert back to those
19 abysmal days when judges spent all their time trying to
10:51:58 20 get through lawyers' gamesmanship.
21 When is this matter set for trial,
22 Counsel?
23 MS. GONZALEZ: 12/4, Your Honor.
24 THE COURT: I want an order from you on
10:52:24 25 Monday consistent with my ruling, specifically
DIANE L. ROBERT
17
June 7, 2018
10:52:27 1 prohibiting the Defendant from utilizing any evidence

2 for any purpose whatsoever that would have been properly
3 responded to in any of the interrogatories, disclosures,
4 or Request For Production which you have identified here
10:52:49 5 today.
6 MS. GONZALEZ: Yes, Your Honor. We would
7 also like the Defendant to provide the verification
8 pages for the interrogatories. We haven't received the
9 verification pages for the original or the ones from
10:53:00 10 last night.
11 THE COURT: But for the fact that that
12 would be abuse of discretion -- it would be abuse of
13 discretion I would order that the interrogatory answers
14 in their entirety would be stricken.
10:53:23 15 You'll comply with that before the end of
16 the day today. Do you understand?
17 MR. TWINING: Yes, Your Honor. I think
18 we -- Yes, Your Honor.
19 Your Honor, I certainly don't want to
10:53:41 20 waste the time of the Court --
21 THE COURT: Counsel, you know, that ship
22 has already sailed. You have done that. Sometimes what
23 you do shouts so loudly I can't hear what you're saying.
24 And for you to stand there and tell me you don't want to
10:53:54 25 waste the Court's time when we've been here for 23
DIANE L. ROBERT
18
June 7, 2018
10:54:00 1 minutes doing things that never should have had to see
2 the inside of a courthouse, for you to tell me that you
3 don't want to waste my time is at best gratuitous and at
4 worst disingenuous.
10:54:17 5 You should never put yourself in a
6 position of going before any judge with a record like
7 the one that you've created. Ever. Ever. It's a
8 disservice to you personally. It's a disservice to your
9 law firm. It's a disservice to the profession to which
10:54:44 10 you swore an oath.
11 We're off the record. That concludes our
12 business.
13 (Proceedings adjourned at 10:54 a.m.)
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DIANE L. ROBERT
19
1 STATE OF TEXAS
2 COUNTY OF DALLAS
3 I, Diane L. Robert, Official Court Reporter in
4 and for the 14th District Court of Dallas County, State
5 of Texas, do hereby certify that the above and foregoing
6 contains a true and correct transcription of all
7 portions of evidence and other proceedings requested in
8 writing by counsel for the parties to be included in
9 this volume of the Reporter's Record in the above-styled
10 and numbered cause, all of which occurred in open court
11 or in chambers and were reported by me.
12 I further certify that this Reporter's Record
13 of the proceedings truly and correctly reflects the
14 exhibits, if any, offered by the respective parties.
15 WITNESS MY OFFICIAL HAND, on this the 8th day
16 of June, 2018.
17
18
BY: /s/ Diane L. Robert
Diane L. Robert, CSR
Texas CSR 2179
19 Official Court Reporter
14th District Court
20 Dallas County, Texas
600 Commerce Street
Telephone: 214.653.7298
22 Expiration: 12/31/2018
drobert@irareporting.com
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DIANE L. ROBERT

Reina Gonzalez Sanctions Against Randy Walters

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Reina Gonzalez Sanctions Against Randy Walters

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1

Plaintiffs' Motion to Compel

10:32:42 1 counsel I think on March 10th asking where their

10:33:41 1 o'clock last night, and it appeared to me that there was

10:35:21 1 Requests for Disclosure we did answer. We have since --

10:36:04 1 advocacy at this point in time. One can make an

10:38:03 1 Tell me what issues are still in dispute,

10:40:09 1 matters, but I believe it was earlier.

10:45:08 1 identification of any consulting expert.

10:50:27 1 ball. You can't litigate effectively like that. When

10:52:27 1 prohibiting the Defendant from utilizing any evidence

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