Document YvO8ak79ndkKwavNwb0meke0

FILE NAME: KUB DATE: 2010 KUB034 DOC#: KUB034 DOCUMENT DESCRIPTION: Legal - Responses to Form Interrogatories Set One 1 Thomas C. Corless (State Bar No. 100614) Aide C. Ontiveros (State Bar No. 169629) 2 WILSON, ELSER, MOSKOWITZ, EDELMAN & DICKER LLP 3 555 S. Flower Street, Suite 2900 Los Angeles, California 90071 4 Telephone: (213)443-5100 Facsimile: (213)443-5101 5 Attorneys for Defendant, KUBOTA CORPORATION 6 7 SUPERIOR COURT FOR THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA 8 FOR THE COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES - CENTRAL DISTRICT 9 10 RHODA EVANS and BOBBY EVANS ) (Unlimited Civil Case) 11 ) Plaintiffs, ) CaseNo.:BC 418867 12 ) Judge: Conrad R. Aragon, Dept. 49 V. 13 ) ) RESPONSES TO FORM ) INTERROGATORIES SET ONE 14 A.W. CHESTERTON COMPANY, et al. ) ) Date: February 5,2010 15 Defendants. ) ) Action Filed: July 29, 2009 16 3 17 PROPOUNDING PARTIES: RHODA EVANS AND BOBBY EVANS 18 RESPONDING PARTY: KUBOTA CORPORATION 19 SET NO.: ONE 20 Defendant KUBOTA CORPORATION ("Defendant" or "KUBOTA") hereby responds 21 22 to Plaintiffs Rhoda Evans and Bobby Evans' ("Plaintiffs") Form Interrogatories, Set No. 1 as 23 follows: 24 PRELIMINARY STATEMENT 25 These responses are made solely for the purpose of, and in relation to, this action. Each 26 response is given subject to all appropriate objections including, but not limited to, objections 27 concerning competency, relevancy, materiality, propriety and admissibility, which would require 28 the exclusion of any statement contained herein where made by a witness present and testifying _______________________________________________^____ i 1 in court. All such objections and grounds therefore are reserved, and may be interposed at the 2 time of trial. 3 It should be noted that this responding party has not fully completed its investigation of 4 the facts relating to this case, has not yet folly completed its discovery in this matter, and has not 5 completed its preparation for trial. All of the responses contained herein are based only upon 6 such information and documents which are presently available to and specifically known to this 7 responding party and disclose only those contentions which presently occur to such responding 8 party. It is anticipated that further discovery, independent investigation, legal research and 9 analysis will supply additional facts, add meaning to the known facts, as well as establish 10 entirely new factual conclusions and legal contentions, all of which may lead to substantial 11 additions to, changes in, and variations from the contentions herein set forth. 12 As Responding Party ceased the sale of asbestos cement pipe in 1975 and during the 13 ensuing 32 years, potentially knowledgeable witnesses have left the employ of the asbestos 14 cement pipe division of Kubota Corporation or have become deceased and, through standard 15 company record destruction policies, potentially responsive documents have been destroyed, it 16 should be noted that Responding Party lacks sufficient information and belief to respond to many 17 18 of the interrogatories. These responses are made on behalf of Kubota Corporation only with 19 regard to information existing during the time asbestos cement pipe was exported to the United 20 States. 21 The following responses are given without prejudice to Kubota Corporation's right to 22 produce evidence of any subsequently discovered facts which this responding party may later 23 recall. Kubota Corporation accordingly reserves the right to change any and all responses herein 24 as additional facts are ascertained, analyses are made, legal research is completed and 25 26 contentions are made. Any interrogatory deemed as continuing is objected to as oppressive, over 27 burdensome, improper, and not in compliance with o f Civil Procedure Sections 2033, et 28 seq., and will not be regarded as continuing in nature. 2 1 GENERAL OBJECTIONS 2 KUBOTA objects to any instruction, interrogatory ore request that purposes to impose 3 upon KUBOTA any obligation not expressly set forth int eh California Rules of Civil Procedure 4 or in the Los Angeles Superior Court General Orders. In particular, KUBOTA objects to the 5 term "You" and "Your", "Defendant" and "Company" on the ground that these terms, as 6 7 defined, make the interrogatories vague, misleading and unduly burdensome. 8 KUBOTA objects to these interrogatories to the extent that they seek information or 9 documents that are subject to the attorney-client privilege, constitute attorney work product or is 10 privileged information developed in anticipation of litigation or in preparation for trial. 11 KUBOTA objects to each interrogatory as unduly burdensome to the extent that it seeks 12 information received by KUBOTA or its counsel only as a result of asbestos litigation. 13 KUBOTA objects generally to these interrogatories to the extent that they purport to 14 15 require defendant to provide information or documents with respect to all of its subsidiaries and 16 affiliated companies which are not part of KUBOTA's and have a separate existence, on the 17 grounds that as so defined, the interrogatories are over broad, and unduly burdensome, seek 18 information and documents not relevant to the subject matter of this action and are not 19 reasonably calculated to lead to the discovery of admissible evidence. 20 RESPONSES TO FORM INTERROGATORIES 21 22 RESPONSE TO FORM INTERROGATORY NO. L I: 23 See Preliminary Statement and General Objections, which are incorporated herein by 24 reference. These responses were prepared by counsel for KUBOTA from prior discovery 25 responses and information gathered over many years through discussions with numerous present 26 and former KUBOTA employees and review of relevant documents. KUBOTA does not have a 27 record o f every person who supplied information. 28 1 RESPONSE TO FORM INTERROGOTORY NO. 17.1 2 See Preliminary Statement and General Objections. KUBOTA objects on the grounds 3 that this interrogatory is vague, overbroad, ambiguous, and not reasonably calculated to lead to 4 the discovery of admissible evidence. KUBOTA objects to the extent it calls for speculation or 5 information equally available to plaintiffs. Additionally, KUBOTA objects insofar as this 6 7 interrogatory seeks information protected by the attorney-client privilege and work product 8 doctrine. To the extent that the information requested by this interrogatory has already been 9 answered by KUBOTA in its responses to Standard Interrogatories and/or Special Interrogatories 10 propounded by plaintiffs, KUBOTA further objects under General Order No. 22's protection that 11 no party must answer any interrogatory more than one, and, therefore, as allowed under General 12 Order No. 22, KUBOTA incorporates herein such responses, copies of which plaintiffs already 13 have or will have in their possession. Finally, KUBOTA objects on the grounds that Los 14 15 Angeles General Order No. 22 only allows plaintiffs to serve one individual set of 16 interrogatories, and plaintiffs have already served a set of interrogatories on this defendant. 17 Dated: March 15,2010 18 19 WILSON, ELSER, MOSKOWITZ, EDELMAN & DICKER LLP 20 21 Thomas C. Corless Aide C. Ontiveros 22 Attorneys for Defendant, KUBOTA CORPORATION 23 24 25 26 27 28 4 PROOF OF SERVICE 1 1013a(3) CCP 2 STATE OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES 3 I am employed in the County of Los Angeles, State of California. I am over the age of 18 4 and not a party to the within action; my business address is 555 South Flower Street, 29TMFloor, 5 Los Angeles, California 90071. 6 On March 15, 2010 I caused the foregoing document described as DEFENDANT KUBOTA CORPORATION'S RESPONSES TO PLAINTIFFS' FORM INTERROGA 7 TORIES, SET ONE, No. 17.1 to be served on the interested parties in this action by placing a true copy thereof enclosed in seal envelopes addressed as follows: 8 9 SEE ATTACHED SERVICE LIST 10 [X] (BY FACSIMILE) I caused said document to be telephonically transmitted to each addressee's telecopier (Fax) number as noted on Proof of Service List 11 AND 12 13 [X] 14 15 16 (BY MAIL) I caused such envelope(s) fully prepaid to be placed in the United States Mail at Los Angeles, California. I am "readily familiar" with the firm's practice of collection and processing correspondence or mailing. Under that practice it would be deposited with the U.S. postal service on that same day with postage thereon fully prepaid at Los Angeles, California in the ordinary course of business. I am aware that on motion of the party served, service is presumed invalid if postal cancellation date or postage meter date is more than one day after date of deposit for mailing in affidavit. 17 [) 18 19 20 [] 21 (BY OVERNIGHT-FEDERAL EXPRESS) I caused said documents) to be picked up by U.S. Federal Express Services for overnight delivery to the offices of the addressees listed on the Service List. (BY HAND DELIVERY/PERSONAL SERVICE) I caused said document(s) to be personally delivered by a courier/attomey service to the addressee as noted on the Service list. 22 I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of California that the above is true and correct. 23 24 Executed on March 15,2010, Los Angeles, California. 25 26 27 28 l 1 RHODA EVANS, SERVICE LIST e t al. v. K U B O TA CO R PO R ATIO N, a l 2 Case No.: BC418867 Our File No.: 00495.06997 3 Jeffrey A. Kaiser, Esq. Attorneys for Plaintiffs, 4 T. Scott Hames, Esq. RHODA EVANS and BOBBY EVANS LEVIN SIMES KAISER & GORNICK LLP 5 44 Montgomery Street, 36thFloor Tel: (415)646-7160 - Fax: (415)981-1270 San Francisco, California 94104 6 (ORIGINAL) 7 K&L Gates, LLP 8 Four Embarcadero Center, Suite 1200 San Francisco, CA 94111 9 (COPY) Attorneys for Crane Co., Individually & as successor-in-interest to Chapman Valve Co. Tel: ((415) 882-8200 - Fax:(415)882-8220 10 11 Corinne Orquiola, Esq. LEWIS BRISBOIS BISGAARD & SMITH LLP 12 221 North Figueroa Street, Suite 1200 Los Angeles, CA 90012 13 (COPY) Attorneys for Advocate Mines, Limited Tel: (213) 250-1800 - Fax: (213) 580-7942 orquiolalallbbslaw.com 14 William J. Sayers, Esq. Attorneys for Certain-Teed Corporation Farah S. Nicol, Esq. 15 Maiy McKelvey, Esq. Tel: (213) 688-1000 - Fax:(213)243-6330 McKENNA, LONG & ALDRIDGE, LLP mmckelveY(S),mckennalone.com 16 300 S. Grand Avenue, Suite 1400 Los Angeles, CA 90071 17 (COPY) 18 Carmen A. Trutanich, Esq. 19 Pamela L. McFarlane, Esq. Eskel Solomon, Esq. 20 111 North Hope Street, Suite 340 P.O. B ox51 111 21 Los Angeles, CA 90051 22 (COPY) Attorneys for Los Angeles Department of Water and Power Tel: (213) 367-4640-4534 - Fax:(213)367-4588 (Maggie Flores - Secretary Pamela.mcfarlane(a)ladwp.com Eskel. solomon,ladwo.com 23 R. Gregory Amudson, Esq. Associated Counsel for City of Los Angeles Acting Seymour B. Everett, Esq. by and through the Department of Water and 24 WOOD, SMITH, HENNING & BERMAN Power of the City of Los Angeles 5000 Birch Street, Suite 8500 25 Newport Beach, CA 92660 Tel.: (949) 757-4500 - Fax: (949) 757-4550 26 (COPY) gamudsonfolwsh blaw.com severett{wshbIaw*com 27 28 2