Hager-Reilly v. SCO Family of Services
- John Koeltl
- 1:21-cv-11023
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In Hager-Reilly v. SCO Family of Services, Judge Cave partly clarified discovery orders, requiring Cheryl Hager-Reilly to produce financial records and search email.
Cheryl Hager-Reilly was required to produce specified financial records and search her personal email by January 13, 2023. SCO Family of Services was to receive the requested materials.
What happened
In Hager-Reilly v. SCO Family of Services, Cheryl Hager-Reilly, representing herself, asked the court to explain parts of an earlier order requiring her to provide financial records and search her personal email for relevant communications.
The court granted her clarification request in part. It explained that she had to provide bank statements from January 1, 2021, onward, 2021 pay stubs, and 2021 Forms W-2, and that she had to keep providing later bank statements showing new compensation or benefits. It also explained that she had to conduct the email search by January 13, 2023.
Judge Sarah L. Cave stated that refusing to search the email account could violate a court order and lead to sanctions, but clarified that the court had not yet issued or recommended sanctions. The court also directed the Clerk to mail the order and earlier documents to Ms. Hager-Reilly.
The detailed version
- Hager-Reilly v. SCO Family of Services · No. 1:21-cv-11023
- John Koeltl
- Jan. 6, 2023
Background
Cheryl Hager-Reilly, who was representing herself, filed a letter-motion stating that she did not understand portions of the court’s January 4, 2023 order. The court treated the letter as a motion asking for clarification.
The earlier orders required Ms. Hager-Reilly to produce financial documents and search her personal Hotmail account for relevant, non-privileged communications concerning her employment with SCO Family of Services or the lawsuit.
Court’s clarification
The court granted the motion for clarification in part. It explained that Ms. Hager-Reilly had to:
- Re-produce bank statements from January 1, 2021, to the present, without the prior redactions covering compensation or benefits from any employer and the dates those payments were received; - Continue producing new bank statements as she received additional compensation or benefits; - Download and produce all available 2021 pay stubs from the New York City Board of Education portal; and - Produce all 2021 Forms W-2 received from any employer.
The court stated that these instructions contained clear time periods. It also rejected Ms. Hager-Reilly’s unsupported belief that the requested emails were not the “best evidence” as a valid reason to refuse the required search. The court had already given her a final extension until Friday, January 13, 2023, to comply.
Warnings and other directions
The court warned that failing to conduct the email search would violate a court order and could result in sanctions. It also reminded Ms. Hager-Reilly that the court had not yet issued or recommended sanctions. The court accepted her response as an acknowledgment that she understood the consequences of failing to comply.
The order provided information about a legal clinic for people in civil cases who do not have lawyers and directed the Clerk of Court to mail the order and several earlier docket entries to Ms. Hager-Reilly. The order also instructed her to promptly notify the court if the mailing address listed in the order was no longer current.
Disposition
The court granted the motion for clarification in part. It did not issue or recommend sanctions in this order.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.