Dennis v. K&L Gates LLP
- Vyskocil
- 1:20-cv-09393
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Dennis v. K&L Gates LLP, Judge Vyskocil granted a stay so arbitration could proceed.
Willie E. Dennis and the named defendants in the case are affected by the stay, which pauses the federal proceeding while arbitration proceeds.
What happened
Dennis v. K&L Gates LLP involves a motion to pause the federal case while arbitration proceeded. Defendants told the court that a District of Columbia court had granted their motion to compel arbitration.
The plaintiff did not oppose the stay motion by the court’s deadline, but filed an amended complaint alleging substantially the same claims as the original complaint. Defendants then asked the federal court to stay the case while arbitration continued.
Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil granted the motion and stayed the case pending the arbitration’s outcome. The parties must file joint status reports every 90 days, beginning June 18, 2021, and notify the court within five days after the arbitration ends.
The detailed version
- Dennis v. K&L Gates LLP · No. 1:20-cv-09393
- Vyskocil
- Mar. 24, 2021
Background
Willie E. Dennis sued K & L Gates LLP and the individual defendants named in the caption. The court received Defendants’ motion to stay the federal proceeding while a motion to compel arbitration was pending in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.
After several extensions, the court ordered Dennis to respond by March 22, 2021. Dennis did not file an opposition by that date but filed an amended complaint. The court stated that the amended complaint alleged substantially the same causes of action as the original complaint.
Arbitration Proceedings
While the motion to stay was pending, Defendants informed the court that the District of Columbia motion to compel arbitration had been granted. Defendants requested a stay so the arbitration could proceed. The court cited Second Circuit precedent stating that the Federal Arbitration Act requires a stay when all claims in an action have been referred to arbitration and a stay is requested.
Ruling
Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil granted the motion. The case is stayed pending the outcome of the arbitration. The parties must file a joint status report about the arbitration on June 18, 2021, and every 90 days afterward until the arbitration is resolved. Within five days after the arbitration is resolved, the parties must submit a joint letter to the court. The Clerk of Court was requested to stay the case and close the motion at ECF No. 5.
The opinion does not decide the underlying claims.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.