Chen v. Shanghai Cafe Deluxe, Inc.
- Figueredo
- 1:16-cv-04790
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In Chen v. Shanghai Cafe Deluxe, Judge Figueredo set deadlines for submissions about a possible default judgment.
Cindy Chen was required to prepare and file the proposed findings and supporting materials. The defendants were given an opportunity to respond, and Shanghai Cafe Deluxe, Inc. was required to use an attorney for any response or request for a damages hearing.
What happened
In Chen v. Shanghai Cafe Deluxe, Inc., the court held a case-management conference about the next steps toward a possible default judgment. Only counsel for Cindy Chen attended, and the court noted that no clerk’s certificate of default had been entered for Eile Wan or John Gu.
The court ordered Chen to serve and file proposed findings about damages by November 30, 2022. Those findings must explain the legal claims and damages calculations and include sworn supporting evidence. Any request for attorney fees and costs must include time records, information supporting the requested hourly rates, and documentation of costs. The defendants could respond by December 30, 2022.
Judge Valerie Figueredo ordered that, if the defendants did not respond, the court would proceed based only on Chen’s written submission toward a report and recommendation about liability and damages for a default judgment. The court also said it would not hold a damages hearing unless one was requested in writing by December 30, 2022.
The detailed version
- Chen v. Shanghai Cafe Deluxe, Inc. · No. 1:16-cv-04790
- Figueredo
- Oct. 21, 2022
Background
On October 20, 2022, the court held a case-management conference about Plaintiff Cindy Chen’s next steps concerning a proposed default judgment. Only Chen’s counsel attended. The court stated that no clerk’s certificate of default had been entered for defendants Eile Wan and John Gu.
Orders concerning damages and fees
The court ordered Chen, by November 30, 2022, to serve on the defendants and file proposed findings of fact and conclusions of law concerning the amount of damages sought upon the defendants’ default. Chen also had to provide a copy of the order with those submissions.
The proposed findings must connect the requested damages to the legal claims on which liability would be established, explain how the damages were calculated, and include a sworn affidavit or declaration under penalty of perjury. That declaration must attach and explain documentary evidence supporting the proposed damages.
If Chen sought attorney fees and litigation costs, the submissions also had to include the attorneys’ contemporaneous time records, information addressing whether the attorneys’ and support staff’s hourly rates were reasonable, and invoices or other documents supporting the claimed costs.
Defendants’ response and possible next step
The defendants could submit a response by December 30, 2022. The court cautioned Shanghai Cafe Deluxe, Inc. that, as a corporation, it could not appear in the court without an attorney; any response or written request for a damages hearing therefore had to be submitted through counsel.
The court ordered that, if the defendants failed to respond by December 30, 2022, it would proceed to issue a report and recommendation concerning liability for entry of a default judgment and damages based only on Chen’s written submission. The court also stated that it would not hold a damages hearing unless one was requested in writing by that date. The order set procedures for the possible default-judgment process; it did not itself enter a default judgment or decide the amount of damages.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.