Storylines Global Inc. v. The Smith Family Trust
- Rochon
- 1:25-cv-05419
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 1
In Storylines Global Inc. v. The Smith Family Trust, Judge Rochon ordered plaintiffs to clarify a cited authority before ruling on their sealing motion.
The order directly affects plaintiffs Storylines Global Inc., Storylines Narrative AG & Co KG, and Alister Punton, who must clarify the cited authority by July 7, 2025. It also concerns their request to file the complaint under seal.
What happened
Storylines Global Inc. v. The Smith Family Trust began when the plaintiffs filed the case and asked to file their complaint under seal. The court could not locate one of the authorities cited in support of that request.
The court identified the citation as “Epstein v. Epstein, No. 19 Civ. 5555 (JMF), 2019 WL 3317280 (S.D.N.Y. July 24, 2019)” and expressed concern that it might be inaccurate.
Judge Jennifer L. Rochon ordered the plaintiffs to file a letter by July 7, 2025, providing a corrected citation or addressing the apparent inaccuracy. The order does not state a ruling on the request to seal the complaint.
The detailed version
- Storylines Global Inc. v. The Smith Family Trust · No. 1:25-cv-05419
- Rochon
- July 2, 2025
Background
On June 30, 2025, Storylines Global Inc., Storylines Narrative AG & Co KG, and Alister Punton filed this action against The Smith Family Trust and Horace Halsey Smith. The plaintiffs also moved for permission to file their complaint under seal. The Southern District of New York’s electronic filing rules require court permission before documents may be sealed or redacted.
The Court’s Concern
The court reviewed the motion to seal and said it could not locate the plaintiffs’ cited authority, “Epstein v. Epstein, No. 19 Civ. 5555 (JMF), 2019 WL 3317280 (S.D.N.Y. July 24, 2019).” The court cited a separate decision expressing concern about reliance on nonexistent authority.
Order
The court ordered the plaintiffs to file a letter by July 7, 2025. The letter must provide a corrected citation for Epstein v. Epstein or otherwise address the apparent inaccuracy. The opinion does not decide the plaintiffs’ motion to seal the complaint. Judge Jennifer L. Rochon issued the order.
Read the full 1-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.