Flynn v. Cable News Network, Inc.
- Sarah Cave
- 1:21-cv-02587
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Flynn v. Cable News Network, Judge Cave denied two discovery motions, set production steps, and imposed deadlines.
John P. “Jack” Flynn, Leslie A. Flynn, Cable News Network, Inc., their attorneys, and the parties’ expert-discovery process.
What happened
In Flynn v. Cable News Network, Inc., CNN sought information from John P. “Jack” Flynn and Leslie A. Flynn, while the Flynns sought to question Anderson Cooper and obtain Twitter data. The order followed a telephone conference about discovery, the evidence-gathering phase of the case.
The court ordered CNN to give the Flynns five to ten search terms for specified Telegram and WhatsApp accounts, and ordered the Flynns’ counsel to reproduce downloaded data for a specified Twitter account. It denied the Flynns’ request to compel Anderson Cooper’s deposition, but said they could renew it with evidence meeting the discussed standard. It also denied CNN’s request to compel additional Twitter-data downloads without prejudice, meaning CNN could renew that request.
Judge Sarah L. Cave set May 18, 2023, as the deadline to complete all discovery, including expert discovery, and set related expert-report and filing deadlines. The order addressed discovery management and did not decide the parties’ underlying claims.
The detailed version
- Flynn v. Cable News Network, Inc. · No. 1:21-cv-02587
- Sarah Cave
- Feb. 21, 2023
Background
The order followed a telephone discovery conference involving John P. “Jack” Flynn, Leslie A. Flynn, and Cable News Network, Inc. (CNN). The order addressed CNN’s requests for information from the Flynns, the Flynns’ request to compel the deposition of Anderson Cooper, and CNN’s request to compel the Flynns to download outstanding Twitter data.
Discovery rulings
The court ordered CNN to provide the Flynns with five to ten search terms. The Flynns were ordered to apply those terms to Jack Flynn’s and Laurie Flynn’s Telegram accounts and to the Flynns’ WhatsApp accounts. The court also ordered the Flynns’ counsel to reproduce data downloaded for the Twitter handle @JosephJFlynn1.
The Flynns’ letter-motion to compel Anderson Cooper’s deposition was denied. The court stated that the Flynns could renew the request if they provided evidence satisfying the standard discussed at the conference and identified in New York Times Co. v. Sullivan, 376 U.S. 254 (1964).
The court ordered the Flynns’ counsel to provide CNN, by February 28, 2023, with screenshots showing attempts to access and download Twitter data. CNN was to provide those screenshots to Twitter. CNN’s letter-motion to compel the Flynns to download Twitter data for outstanding accounts was denied without prejudice, allowing the request to be renewed.
Deadlines and other instructions
All discovery, including expert discovery, had to be completed by May 18, 2023. The parties had to file a joint letter certifying completion by May 25, 2023. They were required to exchange principal expert reports on April 24, 2023, rebuttal expert disclosures on May 8, 2023, and complete all expert depositions by May 18, 2023.
The parties were also ordered to request and file a transcript of the conference. The Clerk of Court was directed to close the docket entries for the two letter-motions, ECF Nos. 110 and 112.
Effect of the order
This was a discovery-management order. It ruled on the two discovery motions but did not decide the parties’ underlying claims or defenses. Judge Sarah L. Cave issued the order.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.