Mwambu v. Monroeville Volunteer Fire Co.

Mwambu v. Monroeville Volunteer Fire Co.

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION BY JUDGE CEISLER

Appellant Monroeville Volunteer Fire Company #4 (Appellant) appeals to this Court to review the October 13, 2020 Order of the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County (trial court) directing Appellant to produce certain documents, written by its insurer, with specific redactions removed that Appellant had made when initially responding to a discovery request. Appellant argues that its initial, more heavily redacted version of the document protects materials subject to attorney-client privilege and the work product doctrine, Pa.R.Civ.P. 4003.1 and 4003.3. Appellant also argues that the Order is immediately appealable pursuant to the collateral order rule, Pa.R.A.P. 313. Upon review, we agree that the Order is immediately appealable and affirm the trial court's order.

Background

Appellant is a municipal government agency which, in addition to its role as a volunteer fire company, provides emergency medical services. Reproduced Record (R.R.) at 6a. On May 9, 2019, an ambulance driven by an employee of Appellant struck and severely injured Kenyatta Mwambu, a 17-year-old boy, [*2]  while he was jogging in the crosswalk of a busy intersection. Id. at 7a. On October 19, 2019, Mwambu and his parents (together, Appellees) filed a complaint in the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, alleging that negligence by the ambulance driver caused the various injuries. Id. at 3a. Appellant's insurance carrier retained counsel to protect its own and Appellant's interests. Id. at 94a. Counsel entered their appearances on Appellant's behalf on November 7, 2019. Id.

Several months of discovery followed. In response to a discovery request, Appellant provided Appellees two documents: a copy of notes written by employees of Appellant's insurance carrier regarding the claim, and an accompanying privilege log pertaining to these notes. Id. at 93a. The six pages of claim notes were compiled between June 4, 2019, and May 5, 2020. Nearly all were authored by Norman Coutant, whom Appellant refers to as a claim handler. Id. at 56a-61a. Approximately 80% of the file had been redacted by Appellant's counsel before it was shared. Id.

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