Battaglia v. New York City Transit Authority

Nature of the Order

This is a notice of reassignment and case-management order. The opinion does not decide the merits of the dispute and does not identify the plaintiff’s claims or the defendants’ defenses.

Reassignment and Existing Deadlines

The case was reassigned to Jessica G. L. Clarke, United States District Judge. The court ordered that all prior orders, dates, and deadlines would remain in effect unless the court ordered otherwise, including the order identified as Dkt. 17.

Initial Pretrial Conference

The court directed counsel for all parties to appear remotely through Microsoft Teams for an initial pretrial conference on November 1, 2023, at 10:00 a.m., unless the court later changed that requirement. Counsel were instructed to review the judge’s individual rules and practices, and all parties were required to register promptly as electronic filing users.

Required Preconference Submissions

Before the conference, counsel were ordered to confer about settlement and other subjects covered by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 16, which governs early case management. One week before the conference, the parties were required to file a joint letter and a proposed civil case-management plan and scheduling order.

The joint letter could not exceed five pages, except that lengthy information about the citizenship of certain entities could be placed in an appendix. The letter had to address whether the conference could be omitted, the nature of the action and principal defenses, the key legal and factual issues, jurisdiction and venue, existing deadlines, outstanding motions, completed and needed discovery, the status of settlement discussions without exact offers or demands, and any other information useful to moving the case toward settlement or trial.

Settlement or Termination

If the case had been settled or otherwise terminated, counsel did not have to file the joint letter or appear, provided that a stipulation of discontinuance, voluntary dismissal, or other proof of termination was filed before the conference date using the appropriate electronic filing procedure.

Extensions and Notice

Requests to extend a deadline or adjourn the conference had to be made by a letter-motion filed electronically at least 48 hours before the relevant deadline or conference. The request had to include specified information, including the original and requested new dates, prior requests, the reason for the request, the other side’s position, and, when applicable, the next scheduled court appearance.

Counsel who had already appeared were directed to promptly serve the reassignment order and the judge’s rules on counsel who had not appeared, or on the party personally if counsel’s identity was unknown. They also had to file proof of that notice.

Disposition

The court issued administrative and pretrial directions. It did not rule on a motion, enter judgment, or decide the underlying claims.