Castillo v. Z Deli Grocery V Corp
- George Daniels
- 1:21-cv-01744
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
Castillo v. Z Deli Grocery V Corp: Judge Willis granted Castillo’s motion to compel former counsel to disclose defendants’ contact information.
Enrique Castillo, Michael Chong, Z Deli Grocery V Corp, Ali Esmael Ziad, and Mohammed Ziad.
What happened
In Castillo v. Z Deli Grocery V Corp, Enrique Castillo asked the court to require the defendants’ former lawyer, Michael Chong, to provide the defendants’ phone numbers and email addresses. Neither Chong nor the defendants responded to the request.
The court explained that attorney-client privilege generally does not protect a client’s identity or identifying information. Because no evidence showed that the requested contact information was connected to legal advice the defendants sought from Chong, the court found that the information was not protected by the privilege.
Judge Jennifer E. Willis granted the motion to compel. She ordered Chong to provide the email addresses and phone numbers within 14 days after being served with the order, and required Castillo to serve the order on Chong and file proof of service by March 15, 2023.
The detailed version
- Castillo v. Z Deli Grocery V Corp · No. 1:21-cv-01744
- George Daniels
- Mar. 1, 2023
Background
Enrique Castillo moved to compel the defendants’ former counsel, Michael Chong, to provide the phone numbers and email addresses of Z Deli Grocery V Corp, Ali Esmael Ziad, and Mohammed Ziad. Neither Chong nor the defendants filed a response.
Court’s Analysis
The court applied the attorney-client privilege, which generally protects confidential communications between a lawyer and client made for the purpose of obtaining or providing legal advice. The court stated that the privilege ordinarily does not protect the identity of a client, even if disclosure could prejudice the client. The person asserting the privilege has the burden of establishing all of its elements.
The court found that no evidence showed the requested email addresses and phone numbers were related to legal advice the defendants sought from Chong. It therefore concluded that the contact information was not protected by attorney-client privilege.
Disposition
The court granted Castillo’s motion to compel, Dkt. No. 66. It ordered Chong to produce the email addresses and phone numbers for the three defendants within 14 days after being served with the order. Castillo was ordered to serve a copy of the order on Chong and file proof of service by March 15, 2023.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.