WORKERS' COMPENSATION - DISCOVERY CUTOFF DEADLINES - MASTERBRAND CABINETS, INC. V. MELEYA GILMORE

In Masterbrand Cabinets, Inc. v. Meleya Gilmore, [Ms. 2100937, Jun. 8, 2012], __ So. 3d __(Ala. Civ. App. 2012), the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals addressed whether a trial court exceeded its discretion when it granted a motion to quash depositions that were noticed after the discovery cutoff date. The party seeking to take the depositions argued that they were "trial" depositions of unavailable witnesses pursuant to Rule 32 of the Alabama Rules of Civil Procedure, and thus the discovery cutoff date in the scheduling order was inapplicable. The Court held that "there is no distinction between discovery depositions and trial depositions" and therefore the trial court did not exceed its discretion when it granted the motions to quash.