DeVincenzi v. The City of New York
- Vernon Broderick
- 1:19-cv-06012
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In DeVincenzi v. City of New York, Judge Broderick denied a stay but extended discovery 90 days because of COVID-19 disruptions.
The ruling affected Sara DeVincenzi as administrator for the Estate of Benjamin DeVincenzi, the City of New York, and the other defendants by keeping the case active while extending the discovery deadline to July 27, 2020.
What happened
DeVincenzi v. The City of New York concerns a lawsuit brought by Sara DeVincenzi as administrator for Benjamin DeVincenzi’s estate. The lawsuit alleges that members of the New York City Police Department falsely arrested Benjamin DeVincenzi on or about July 8, 2016.
The defendants asked Judge Broderick to pause the entire case for 90 days because the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted government work, document collection, communications, and depositions. They said discovery was incomplete, some medical records had not been received, depositions had not occurred, and the settlement conference had not been held.
Judge Vernon S. Broderick denied the request to stay the case but adjourned the discovery deadline by 90 days, setting the close of discovery for July 27, 2020. He also directed the parties to participate in a post-discovery telephone conference on August 14, 2020.
The detailed version
- DeVincenzi v. The City of New York · No. 1:19-cv-06012
- Vernon Broderick
- Apr. 29, 2020
Background
Sara DeVincenzi, acting as administrator for the Estate of Benjamin DeVincenzi, brought this civil case against the City of New York and other defendants. The complaint alleges, among other things, that members of the New York City Police Department falsely arrested Benjamin DeVincenzi on or about July 8, 2016.
The parties filed a proposed case-management plan on December 9, 2019. After an initial conference on January 30, 2020, the court referred the matter to Magistrate Judge Kevin Nathaniel Fox for a settlement conference and approved the case-management plan. The plan set April 28, 2020 as the discovery deadline.
Defendants’ request
The defendants asked the court to stay, or pause, the entire case for 90 days because of the COVID-19 pandemic. They stated that the New York City Law Department’s employees were working from home and that this created difficulties receiving medical records and other documents, communicating with law-enforcement agencies and medical facilities, accessing files, coordinating depositions, and conducting other litigation work.
The defendants also stated that the parties had exchanged discovery demands and initial disclosures, but that certain medical records had not been received, depositions had not been taken, and the settlement conference had not occurred. The defendants said they had been unable to obtain the plaintiff’s position on the requested stay.
Ruling
Judge Vernon S. Broderick denied the defendants’ request to stay the case. He adjourned the discovery deadline by 90 days, with discovery closing on July 27, 2020. The order also directed the parties to participate in a post-discovery telephone conference on August 14, 2020, at 10:30 a.m.
The order addressed case scheduling and discovery. It did not decide the merits of the allegations concerning Benjamin DeVincenzi’s arrest.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.