Jeremy Mayfield case to continue; Brian France deposition set

By Bob Pockrass - Associate Editor
Monday, December 07, 2009

A U.S. District Court judge has turned down NASCAR’s request to halt the pre-trial discovery phase in a lawsuit brought against the sanctioning body by suspended driver Jeremy Mayfield.

NASCAR had asked for the suspension of the investigative phase of the case until a judge can rule on a NASCAR motion for a judgment based on pleadings already submitted.

The decision, issued Monday by U.S. District Court Judge Graham Mullen, means that depositions and production of documents will not be delayed because of the NASCAR request. The judge still needs to rule on the motion for judgment itself.

In another ruling issued Monday, the judge set the date for a deposition of NASCAR Chairman Brian France for Jan. 19. The judge also ruled as moot requests by NASCAR and France’s ex-wife Megan France, that they not be forced to produce documents under seal in litigation between her and Brian because Mayfield’s attorneys indicated they would not seek those documents. He did grant a motion stipulating that in Megan France’s deposition, she cannot be asked about the documents in that lawsuit or about the divorce agreement.

Mayfield filed suit following his suspension for a May 1 drug test that NASCAR says produced a positive result for methamphetamines. Mayfield denies using methamphetamines, claiming the test results were produced by a combination of prescription medicine Adderall for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and over-the-counter allergy medication Claritin-D.

Mullen also set a hearing for Jan. 25 to discus a variety of pending motions. He indicated he likely will have an additional hearing dedicated solely to the issue of Brian France’s state citizenship and whether the federal courts have jurisdiction in this case.
 

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