Kamiel v. Hai Street Kitchen Co.

Background

On December 3, 2019, Judge Engelmayer entered a default judgment against Hai Street Kitchen & Co. LLC, Sakura Dining Corporation, Sun Joon Kim, and Daisuke Kawauchi. The opinion states that the case was referred to Magistrate Judge Stewart D. Aaron for an inquest concerning Plaintiff Sheri Kamiel’s damages. A damages inquest is a proceeding to determine the monetary relief owed after liability has been established.

Required submissions

Judge Aaron ordered Kamiel to serve each defendant and file proposed findings of fact and conclusions of law concerning all damages and other monetary relief allowed by the default judgment by January 10, 2020. The filing had to end with a concise statement of the amount sought, including the exact dollar amount.

The proposed findings had to connect the requested damages to the legal claims on which liability had been established and explain how Kamiel calculated the requested amount. They also had to be supported by one or more affidavits and documentary evidence, with citations supporting each proposed finding. Any allegations about liability had to cite the appropriate paragraphs of the complaint.

Instead of separate conclusions of law, Kamiel could file a legal memorandum explaining the principles supporting the requested damages, interest, or attorneys’ fees. The papers also had to include an affidavit from someone with personal knowledge establishing the court’s authority over the defendants and its authority to hear the subject matter. Any request for attorneys’ fees had to include contemporaneous time records and information about each attorney’s services, years admitted to the bar, and hourly rate, along with the legal basis for the requested fees.

Defendants’ responses and procedure

The defendants were ordered to send any response to Kamiel’s counsel and file it with the court by February 14, 2020. Judge Aaron stated that he might conduct the damages inquest solely on the parties’ written submissions. A party seeking an evidentiary hearing had to explain why written submissions were insufficient and describe the witnesses and evidence that would be presented.

The order stated that Kamiel’s service of the required documents on each defendant at the defendants’ corporate address and through the New York Department of State would be sufficient service.

Disposition

Judge Aaron entered a scheduling order for the damages inquest. The opinion did not determine the amount of damages, attorneys’ fees, interest, or other monetary relief.