Toys "R" US, Inc. v. AMIC Trading LTD

Background

The parties attempted to execute a settlement agreement. Defendant performed what it believed were its obligations under that agreement. Plaintiffs later told the court that the settlement negotiations had been subject to a man-in-the-middle cyberattack and that Defendant’s performance did not match Plaintiffs’ version of the agreement.

Defendant brought a separate action to enforce the terms that the parties shared and moved to stay, or pause, the claims in this case. The court stated that the dispute over the settlement agreement’s enforceability presented a novel and non-frivolous legal question. It also stated that a ruling for Defendant in the separate action would completely resolve the claims here, making a stay appropriate to avoid unnecessary litigation.

Joinder Motion

Plaintiffs moved to join TRU Kids Inc. as a plaintiff. The order states that TRU Kids is the assignee of the licensing agreement central to the claims in this case and is also a party to the disputed settlement agreement. Defendant did not oppose the joinder. The court concluded that adding TRU Kids would reduce the risk of later duplicative litigation over the licensing agreement and was appropriate under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 19(a)(1), which addresses required joinder of certain parties.

Ruling

Judge J. Paul Oetken granted Defendant’s motion to stay the case pending resolution of Defendant’s separate action to enforce the settlement agreement. The court also granted Plaintiffs’ motion for joinder. The Clerk of Court was directed to close the motions at Docket Numbers 17 and 21. The order did not decide the enforceability of the settlement agreement or the merits of the claims in this case.