PowX Inc. v. Performance Solutions, LLC
- Garnett
- 1:24-cv-01389
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In PowX v. Performance Solutions, Judge Garnett granted counsel’s withdrawal, postponed a conference, ordered preservation steps, and sealed sensitive materials.
PowX, its former TKD attorneys, Mr. Laufer as referenced in the preservation directive, and Performance Solutions. The order also affects the handling of records and sealed declaration materials in the case.
What happened
In PowX Inc. v. Performance Solutions, LLC, Tarter Krinsky & Drogin LLP and its associated attorneys asked to withdraw as PowX’s lawyers and to postpone a March 6, 2025 conference. Performance Solutions opposed the request.
The court granted the motion because recent developments created serious conflicts between the lawyers and PowX, and the lawyers might become witnesses. The court said PowX’s nonpayment was not a reason for its decision. The court postponed the conference until May 8, 2025, and ordered the lawyers to monitor the case, preserve records, and take other steps concerning communications and evidence. The court also granted a request to seal parts of a declaration containing sensitive information about PowX and the attorney-client relationship.
Judge Margaret M. Garnett relieved the listed lawyers as PowX’s counsel, ordered Tuvia Rotberg and Sandra A. Hudak to appear at the May 8 conference, and directed the lawyers to notify the court about any counsel they retain concerning the issues raised by Performance Solutions. The order did not prevent Performance Solutions from filing other motions.
The detailed version
- PowX Inc. v. Performance Solutions, LLC · No. 1:24-cv-01389
- Garnett
- Mar. 4, 2025
What the court considered
On March 3, 2025, Tarter Krinsky & Drogin LLP (TKD) and its associated attorneys moved to withdraw as counsel for PowX and asked to postpone a March 6, 2025 conference for 60 days. Performance Solutions opposed the motion by letter.
Withdrawal of counsel and postponed conference
The court granted the motion. It stated that recent developments had created serious and concerning conflicts of interest between TKD’s lawyers and PowX that required the lawyers’ withdrawal. The court also referred to the possibility that the lawyers could become witnesses in the case. The court specifically clarified that PowX’s nonpayment was not a basis for its decision.
The court relieved Tuvia Rotberg, Sandra A. Hudak, Chandler R. Sturm, and Eliezer Lekht as counsel for PowX. To give PowX time to obtain substitute counsel, the court postponed the conference until May 8, 2025, at 11:30 a.m. The conference will remain in person in Courtroom 906 of the Thurgood Marshall Courthouse. Only Rotberg and Hudak, identified as the lead TKD attorneys, were ordered to appear.
Additional orders concerning records and appearances
Because the order referred to serious allegations of attorney misconduct and the court’s authority to supervise lawyers appearing before it, the court ordered the TKD attorneys to:
- Continue monitoring the case docket daily even though they were no longer PowX’s counsel. - Personally appear at the May 8 conference, with the order specifying that Rotberg and Hudak must appear. - Preserve all records of communications with PowX and all records relating to TKD’s representation of PowX. - Instruct PowX and Mr. Laufer to preserve communications and records involving TKD and its representation of PowX, and remind them to preserve records and communications related to the litigation generally. - Confirm by March 7, 2025, that they had served the order on PowX by email and first-class mail and had given those preservation instructions. - Promptly notify Performance Solutions’ counsel and the court if TKD or any TKD attorney retained counsel concerning the matters raised in Performance Solutions’ February 27, 2025 letter.
Sealing request
The court also granted the letter motion to seal the declaration of Tuvia Rotberg filed in support of the withdrawal motion. It found that sealing the portions referring to sensitive information about PowX and the attorney-client relationship was necessary to maintain confidentiality.
Other directions and disposition
The court stated that nothing in the order affected Performance Solutions’ ability to file the motions identified in its February 27, 2025 letter. Those motions could be filed at any time. The Clerk of Court was directed to terminate docket entries 82 and 83 and to remove the TKD attorneys from the docket as PowX’s counsel.
Judge Margaret M. Garnett therefore granted the motion to withdraw and postpone the conference, granted the sealing motion, relieved the TKD attorneys as PowX’s counsel, and imposed the additional record-preservation, notice, monitoring, and appearance requirements described above.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.