Dennis v. K&L Gates LLP
- Vyskocil
- 1:20-cv-09393
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 1
In Dennis v. K&L Gates, Judge Vyskocil denied Dennis’s request to lift the stay, keeping his civil case stayed during court-compelled arbitration.
Willie E. Dennis and the defendants in his stayed civil case, including K&L Gates LLP.
What happened
Willie E. Dennis sued K&L Gates LLP and others in Dennis v. K&L Gates LLP. The court received two letters from Dennis, who was representing himself, but said the letters did not relate to his civil case.
Some documents connected to one letter appeared to contain private communications between Dennis and counsel in his criminal case. The court kept those documents under seal pending further order and took no action on the letters themselves. It denied any request to lift the stay.
Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil ordered that Dennis’s civil case remain stayed pending the outcome of court-compelled arbitration.
The detailed version
- Dennis v. K&L Gates LLP · No. 1:20-cv-09393
- Vyskocil
- July 11, 2022
Background
The court received two communications filed by Willie E. Dennis, who was representing himself. The opinion states that the letters and their contents did not relate to Dennis’s civil case against K&L Gates LLP and the other defendants.
Sealing of Documents
Some documents filed with one of the letters appeared to contain privileged communications between Dennis and counsel in his criminal case. The court ordered that those documents be maintained under seal pending further order.
Stay and Arbitration
The court took no action on the letters because they did not relate to the civil case. To the extent the letters requested that the court lift the stay, the court denied that request. The civil case remains stayed pending the outcome of court-compelled arbitration.
Disposition
Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil denied the request to lift the stay. The order did not decide the underlying claims against K&L Gates LLP or the other defendants.
Read the full 1-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.