Norwegian Cruise Line ship. Norwegian Cruise Line ship. Photo: Nazar Skladanyi/Shutterstock.com.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman gave one corporate defendant in the Southern District of Florida a piece of his mind in shutting down their request for an emergency motion for a protective order, after discovering that there wasn't actually an emergency—especially when put into context of a global pandemic.

"I feel compelled to offer some observations in the 'let's-keep-things-in-perspective' department," Goodman's order said. "If all the issues we are currently facing were to be organized on a ladder of importance, this deposition-scheduling dispute would not even reach the bottom rung of a 10-rung ladder."

Defendant NCL (Bahamas) Ltd.—commonly known as Norwegian Cruise Lines—sought a protective order that would stop a corporate representative from being deposed Wednesday, over a lawsuit from an anonymous passenger who alleges she was assaulted on one of its ships. The emergency motion claimed opposing counsel has ignored attempts to reschedule.

But Goodman called that issue "comparatively unimportant," reminding both sides that "the entire world is in the midst of a pandemic" and that "life will go on" without the deposition.

"Thousands of people worldwide have contracted the coronavirus and there have been hundreds of virus-caused deaths in the United States," Goodman wrote. "Millions of Americans have been ordered to remain in their homes. Millions more have lost their jobs in the past two weeks. The stock market has taken a brutal beating in the last two to three weeks. Many people are scared. Others are panicked. Everyone is unsure about the future. Cruises have been canceled and all the major airlines have severely curtailed their flights."

Goodman said he was shocked the attorneys couldn't resolve the issue themselves. He also remarked that it wouldn't be rational to expect them to comply with social distancing orders while taking witness depositions, or to properly prepare the representative when the cruise ship industry is at a standstill and thousands of staff have been fired.

"Nevertheless, the lawyers in this case have been exchanging snippy emails over the past two weeks over the scheduling of a corporate representative deposition," the order said. "Moreover, defense counsel certified that this routine discovery dust-up is so important that it merits 'emergency' status. No, it doesn't."

What's more, U.S. District Judge Cecilia Altonaga had already canceled the deposition but denied NCL's emergency motion, finding it didn't comply with a discovery procedures order.

"Would the world end if the corporate deposition did not occur next week? Obviously not," the order said.

Plaintiffs attorney Philip Gerson of Gerson & Schwartz in Miami called the issue "a tempest in a teapot" and said he's sought the deposition since January.

"We cannot comment on the ruling of a judge. However, I can state that for many years we have maintained cordial professional relations with the cruise ship companies and their capable lawyers," Gerson said. "Case management orders limit our discovery time window, so we must be aggressive in getting the evidence we need in discovery. Thus it is not uncommon to seek magistrate supervision to manage discovery schedules."

Gerson said his team canceled the deposition and has asked NCL for alternative dates. He's handling the case with David Markel, Edward Schwartz, Raul Delgado II and Nicholas Gerson.

Defense attorneys Darren Friedman, Jeffrey Foreman and Avi Shoham of Foreman Friedman in Miami declined to comment.

They followed up with a motion to dismiss the plaintiffs fraudulent concealment count Friday for failure to state a claim.

When the deposition does finally go ahead, Goodman's order said the attorneys will be expected to "explain their behavior in context of the far-more-important issues this court (and the entire world) is facing."

Read the order:

Read more:

COVID-19 Couldn't Stop This Case: Inside South Florida's Last Federal Jury Trial

Novel Coronavirus Leads to Fewer People Being Locked Up