Burrows

ORDER REGARDING APPLICABILITY OF CALIFORNIA EVIDENCE CODE § 1157

In their objections to a number of plaintiffs’ discovery requests, defendants Redbud and Adventist raised claims of privilege under California Evidence Code § 1157, which substantially limits discovery into the proceedings and records of hospital medical staffs concerned with evaluation and improvement of the quality of care in a hospital. During an earlier discovery conference, plaintiffs sought to compel responses to the challenged discovery requests, contending that the limitations imposed on California courts by § 1157 do not apply in federal court.

Plaintiffs’ then-pending discovery disputes were partially resolved by this Court’s order filed November 3, 1997. However, at that time Superior Court Judge Warren had under submission the question of whether Evidence Code § 1157 applied in the state criminal ease pending against Dr. Schug: prosecutors were seeking, and defendant Schug was resisting, production of such records. In the interest of protecting Dr. Schug’s right to a fair criminal trial, this Court refrained from ruling on the applicability of § 1157 in the federal context until the state court had…