Esposito v. Gary

Background

Luisa Castagna Esposito, who is representing herself, filed a letter motion asking to modify a protective order entered at ECF No. 244. The protective order governs discovery materials produced by Travelers Insurance Company in this federal action.

Esposito said the Travelers materials were directly relevant to a related case in Nassau County Supreme Court, identified in the filing as Esposito v. Allen H. Isaac, Index No. 900010/2023. She stated that Travelers had denied insurance coverage and that the state case concerned the same underlying matters. She also stated that the federal action was pending on appeal in the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

The Requested Modification

Esposito asked to use and disclose the Travelers discovery materials in the state case. She identified materials concerning insurance coverage, common-interest and joint-defense privilege logs, policy language, defense obligations, claims handling, and Travelers’ knowledge of the insured. She argued that the protective order’s restriction on use or disclosure outside the federal case prevented her from presenting the materials in the state litigation.

The filing also stated that a state-court judge had issued subpoenas concerning Travelers, Chubb, and Philadelphia Indemnity Insurance Companies. The requested order, however, addressed discovery materials produced by Travelers.

Ruling

The court-ordered text states that the protective order at ECF No. 244 was modified to permit Esposito to use and disclose the discovery materials produced by Travelers Insurance Company in Esposito v. Allen H. Isaac, Index No. 900010/2023. The document bears a “SO ORDERED” endorsement and Judge Paul G. Gardephe’s signature. The ruling concerns modification of a discovery protective order; it does not decide the merits of the underlying federal or state litigation.