Burton v. City of New York
- John Cronan
- 1:21-cv-06928
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Burton v. City of New York, Judge Cronan granted limited early discovery to identify John Doe defendants and set deadlines for discovery-related steps.
Leroy Burton, the unidentified John Doe defendants, and the other defendants and counsel involved in the discovery process.
What happened
In Burton v. City of New York, Leroy Burton’s newly retained lawyers asked for early, limited discovery to learn the identities of defendants identified only as John Does. The request said Burton had been unable to identify them because of his incarceration, limited resources, and prior lack of a lawyer.
The court granted the motion. Burton may serve written discovery requests by May 5, 2023, and may take depositions within 30 days after receiving the defendants’ production. The defendants must also tell the court by May 5 whether they oppose Burton’s request to file an amended complaint within 21 days after early discovery ends.
Judge John P. Cronan issued the order on April 28, 2023. The order does not itself decide the underlying claims or expressly grant Burton’s requested deadline for filing an amended complaint.
The detailed version
- Burton v. City of New York · No. 1:21-cv-06928
- John Cronan
- May 2, 2023
Background
Leroy Burton’s lawyers asked the court to authorize expedited discovery before the parties’ required conference under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(f). The requested discovery was limited to identifying the John Doe defendants. The letter stated that Burton had previously been unable to identify those defendants because of his incarceration, lack of resources, and pro se status. It also stated that the City had been unable to identify them under an earlier court order.
The lawyers said they expected to serve written discovery requests by May 5, 2023, and to complete any depositions within 30 days after receiving the defendants’ production. They also asked for permission to file an amended complaint within 21 days after the early-discovery period ended.
Ruling
The court granted the motion for limited discovery. Burton may serve written discovery requests by May 5, 2023, and may conduct depositions within 30 days after receiving production from the defendants. By May 5, the defendants must submit a letter stating whether they oppose Burton’s request to file an amended complaint within 21 days after the early-discovery period ends.
The order does not state that the court granted the requested 21-day amendment period. It also does not decide the merits of Burton’s claims or identify the John Doe defendants.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.