D.R. v. Santos Bakery, Inc.
- Katharine Parker
- 1:20-cv-03628
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In D.R. v. Santos Bakery, Inc., Judge Parker set procedures for confidential filings and considered mediation without deciding the case’s merits.
The plaintiffs and defendants, particularly anyone filing confidential information with the post-trial submissions; the plaintiffs also had to state whether they would participate in mediation.
What happened
D.R. v. Santos Bakery, Inc. concerns two questions raised by the defendants after a trial: how to handle confidential information in a post-trial filing and whether to use the court’s mediation program.
The court directed either party that wants to submit information believed to require sealing to follow the procedures in Judge Parker’s civil-case rules. Those procedures require a public letter explaining the request, a public version of the document with proposed redactions, and a sealed unredacted version with the proposed redactions identified. The parties may cite the trial transcript without filing it as a separate exhibit.
The court said it would refer the case to mediation if the plaintiffs agreed to participate. The plaintiffs had to state their position by August 21, 2023, and the referral would not change the briefing schedule. Judge Parker did not rule on the post-trial motion or the merits of the case.
The detailed version
- D.R. v. Santos Bakery, Inc. · No. 1:20-cv-03628
- Katharine Parker
- Aug. 16, 2023
Background
The defendants asked the court for guidance on two issues after the parties tried the case in June 2023. First, they asked how to handle confidential information, including photographs of the minor plaintiff and material from the trial transcript, in their post-trial motion. Second, they asked about using the court-annexed mediation program.
Confidential filings
The court directed that any party seeking to include information reasonably believed to require filing under seal must follow Section III(d) of Judge Parker’s individual rules for civil cases. The party must file a publicly viewable letter motion explaining why sealing is requested and addressing the standards discussed in Lugosch v. Pyramid Co. of Onondaga and Bernstein v. Bernstein Litowitz Berger & Grossmann LLP. The party must also publicly file a version of the document showing proposed redactions and separately file an unredacted version under seal with the proposed redactions highlighted.
The court stated that, because it had access to the trial transcript, the parties could cite the transcript without filing it as a separate exhibit.
Mediation
The court stated that it would refer the case to the mediation program if the plaintiffs were willing to participate. The plaintiffs were ordered to file a letter stating their position by Monday, August 21, 2023. The court also stated that a referral to mediation would not affect the briefing schedule.
Disposition and significance
This order resolved filing and mediation procedures. It did not decide the defendants’ post-trial motion or the parties’ underlying claims. Judge Katharine H. Parker therefore entered an ancillary procedural order rather than a ruling on the merits.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.