Lewis v. New York State Office for People with Developmental Disabilities
- Ronnie Abrams
- 1:25-cv-01136
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 8
In Lewis v. New York State Office for People with Developmental Disabilities, Judge Abrams set mediation and discovery procedures while the motion to dismiss remained pending.
ODEIJAH LEWIS and the New York State Office for People with Developmental Disabilities, whose case is subject to the ordered joint reporting requirement and initial discovery procedures.
What happened
In Lewis v. New York State Office for People with Developmental Disabilities, the defendant had filed a motion asking the court to dismiss the complaint. The order did not decide that motion.
The court said that if it denies the motion to dismiss, the case will automatically be referred to the court’s mediation program. It also required initial discovery to follow the court’s protocols for represented employment cases. By March 17, 2025, the parties had to jointly tell the court whether they agreed to pause the case while the motion was pending and whether they wanted early settlement discussions through mediation or a magistrate judge.
Judge Ronnie Abrams issued the order on March 10, 2025. The order addressed case-management procedures, discovery, and possible settlement discussions; it did not rule on the complaint’s legal claims or state whether the motion to dismiss would be granted or denied.
The detailed version
- Lewis v. New York State Office for People with Developmental Disabilities · No. 1:25-cv-01136
- Ronnie Abrams
- Mar. 10, 2025
Background
The defendant filed a motion to dismiss the complaint on March 7, 2025. The opinion does not describe the complaint’s specific claims or the arguments in the motion.
Court’s directives
The court advised the parties that, if it denies the pending motion to dismiss, the case will be automatically referred to the Southern District of New York’s alternative-dispute-resolution mediation program under the court’s standing administrative order concerning employment-discrimination cases.
The court also ordered that initial discovery follow the Pilot Discovery Protocols for Counseled Employment Cases. Those protocols provide for an early exchange of specified documents and information, including employment records, relevant communications, information about alleged discriminatory comments or harassment, and claimed damages, depending on the claims in the case. The attached materials also include a protective order governing confidential information exchanged under the protocols.
By March 17, 2025, the parties had to file a joint letter stating whether they agreed to stay, or pause, the case while the motion to dismiss was resolved. They also had to state whether they wanted the court to refer the case immediately to the court-annexed mediation program or to a magistrate judge for settlement discussions, and, if so, which option they preferred.
Ruling and effect
Judge Ronnie Abrams entered a case-management order establishing these procedures. The order did not grant or deny the motion to dismiss, decide the complaint’s merits, or state whether the case would be referred to mediation. It required the parties to provide the requested joint letter and established discovery procedures for the case.
Read the full 8-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.