Senior v. Koco Life, LLC

Order and case posture

The court entered a case-management order early in the action. It did not rule on whether Senior has standing or whether Koco Life’s website is covered by Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Instead, it required the parties to address those issues during settlement discussions.

Required settlement discussions

Within 30 days after service of the summons and complaint on Koco Life, the parties must meet and confer for at least one hour in a good-faith attempt to settle. During those discussions, they must consider whether Senior satisfies the threshold requirement of standing. They must also consider whether the website is a “standalone website,” described in the order as a business website without a physical location. The order notes that some courts in the Southern District of New York have held that such websites are not places of public accommodation under Title III.

If the parties cannot settle the case themselves, they must discuss whether additional settlement efforts through the court’s mediation program or before a magistrate judge would be productive at that time.

Joint letter and response deadline

Within 15 additional days—45 days after service—the parties must file a joint letter stating whether they settled. If they did not settle, the letter must ask the court either to refer the case to mediation or to a magistrate judge for a settlement conference, while stating a preference, or to proceed with an initial status conference. The letter must also state whether Koco Life intends to answer or move to dismiss the complaint. If Koco Life anticipates moving to dismiss, it must briefly describe the basis for that motion in no more than one paragraph.

The deadline for Koco Life to answer or otherwise respond to the complaint is stayed, meaning paused, until the joint letter is submitted. After the letter is filed, the court will set either a deadline for an answer or a briefing schedule for a motion to dismiss.

Notice requirements

Counsel who had appeared by the date of the order must promptly send the order and Judge Garnett’s Individual Rules and Practices to counsel for parties who had not appeared. If counsel does not know the identity of another party’s counsel, the materials must be sent directly to that party. Counsel must file proof that the notice was provided.

Disposition

Judge Margaret M. Garnett entered the settlement and scheduling directives described above. The opinion does not state that the court granted or denied a motion, dismissed any claim, or resolved the underlying legal issues.