Cardenas v. Guerra
- Jesse Furman
- 1:24-cv-04201
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Cardenas v. Guerra, Judge Furman approved settlement payments and dismissed the case with prejudice.
The plaintiffs, Jonathan Guerra, and Lisa Marie Alfrey were affected by the settlement disbursement and dismissal; Prudential had already been dismissed. The two law firms and St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital were designated to receive distributed funds.
What happened
Cardenas v. Guerra involved Daniel Cardenas and Loyda Cardenas, Jonathan Guerra, Lisa Marie Alfrey, and The Prudential Insurance Company of America. Prudential had already been dismissed after depositing $176,012.04 with the court, and the remaining parties reached a settlement.
The order directed payment of $60,000 to Ran Mukherjee, P.C., and $115,000 to the plaintiffs’ law firm, Hartmann Doherty Rosa Berman & Bulbulia LLP. After an authorized court-registry fee, all remaining funds, including accumulated interest, were to be paid to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital.
Judge Jesse Furman ordered the Clerk to dismiss the case with prejudice, with each party responsible for its own costs and attorney’s fees.
The detailed version
- Cardenas v. Guerra · No. 1:24-cv-04201
- Jesse Furman
- Jan. 2, 2025
Background
The plaintiffs were Daniel Cardenas and Loyda Cardenas. The defendants were Jonathan Guerra, Lisa Marie Alfrey, and The Prudential Insurance Company of America. The order states that Prudential had previously been dismissed after depositing $176,012.04 into the court’s registry on November 19, 2024.
The remaining parties entered into a settlement agreement resolving the action and jointly applied for an order directing how the deposited funds should be distributed.
Disbursement
The Clerk was directed to withdraw the funds and any accrued interest from the court’s investment system. After deducting a fee authorized by the Judicial Conference and set by the Director of the Administrative Office, the order directed these payments:
- $60,000 to Ran Mukherjee, P.C.; - $115,000 to Hartmann Doherty Rosa Berman & Bulbulia LLP; and - all remaining funds to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital.
Disposition
Judge Jesse Furman ordered the Clerk to dismiss the case with prejudice. The order also provided that each party would bear its own costs and attorney’s fees. The opinion is a settlement-based disposition and does not decide the underlying claims on their merits.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.