National Union Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburgh v. Surgalign Spine…
National Union Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburgh, Pa. v. Surgalign Spine Technologies, Inc.
- Rochon
- 1:22-cv-09870
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In National Union v. Surgalign, Judge Rochon granted the parties’ joint request to stay discovery while motions to dismiss remained pending.
The stay affects discovery deadlines and conferences involving the parties, Montefiore, their predecessors, current and former employees, and specified agents; discovery directed to other third parties was not included in the requested stay.
What happened
National Union Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburgh, Pa. v. Surgalign Spine Technologies, Inc. involves claims arising from alleged false invoices for spinal-surgery products and alleged bribery of a Montefiore employee. National Union says it reimbursed Montefiore for more than $3 million in losses and sued Surgalign and Organogenesis.
After the defendants moved to dismiss the amended complaint, the parties jointly asked the court to pause discovery and reschedule the initial pretrial conference. The request covered specified discovery involving the parties, Montefiore, and related employees and agents, while excluding discovery directed to certain other third parties.
Judge Jennifer L. Rochon granted the joint request. The court adjourned all discovery deadlines and conferences; the opinion does not decide the defendants’ motions to dismiss or the underlying claims.
The detailed version
- National Union Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburgh v. Surgalign Spine… · No. 1:22-cv-09870
- Rochon
- Mar. 16, 2023
Background
National Union Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburgh, Pa., acting as subrogee and assignee of Montefiore Medical Center, sued Surgalign Spine Technologies, Inc. and Organogenesis, Inc. National Union alleges that the defendants retained a sales representative who submitted false invoices claiming that the defendants’ products had been used in spinal surgeries. It also alleges that the representative bribed a Montefiore employee to assist in the alleged fraud.
According to the allegations described in the filing, Montefiore paid the defendants more than $3 million for products that were not used and suffered a loss exceeding $3 million. National Union says it reimbursed Montefiore under its insurance policy and brought claims for fraud, unjust enrichment, aiding and abetting a breach of fiduciary duty, and negligent supervision.
The amended complaint was filed on January 27, 2023. On March 10, 2023, Surgalign and Organogenesis each filed a motion under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6), which asks the court to dismiss claims for failure to state a legally sufficient claim. Together, those motions seek dismissal of the amended complaint in full.
Request to Stay Discovery
During their required conference about case management, the defendants proposed staying discovery until the court resolves their motions to dismiss. National Union agreed to pause discovery and related deadlines, including initial disclosures, involving Surgalign, Organogenesis, National Union, Montefiore, their predecessors, current and former employees, and agents not alleged to have participated in the alleged fraud. The proposed stay did not include discovery directed to other third parties.
The parties also asked the court to reschedule the initial pretrial conference until 30 days after the court rules on the motions to dismiss, or until another date the court considered appropriate.
Ruling
Judge Jennifer L. Rochon granted the parties’ joint request to stay discovery as presented. The order states that all discovery deadlines and conferences were adjourned. The order did not rule on the defendants’ motions to dismiss and did not decide whether National Union’s claims have merit.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.