Senior v. Mott & Bow, Inc.
- Rochon
- 1:24-cv-01325
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 1
In Senior v. Mott & Bow, Judge Rochon ordered the parties to discuss settlement and standing, then report whether to settle, mediate, or hold a status conference.
Frank Senior and Mott & Bow, Inc., who must complete the ordered settlement discussions and jointly report to the court.
What happened
Senior v. Mott & Bow, Inc. is an order directing Frank Senior and Mott & Bow, Inc. to try to settle the case. Within 30 days after the summons and complaint are served, they must meet for at least one hour and discuss whether Senior meets the legal requirement of standing to bring the case.
If they cannot settle on their own, the parties must also discuss whether mediation or a settlement conference with a magistrate judge would be useful. Within 45 days after service, they must send the court a joint letter stating whether they settled and, if not, asking either for mediation or a settlement conference or for an initial status conference.
Judge Jennifer L. Rochon issued this procedural order on February 22, 2024. The order does not decide the parties’ claims or the standing issue; it requires settlement discussions and a follow-up report.
The detailed version
- Senior v. Mott & Bow, Inc. · No. 1:24-cv-01325
- Rochon
- Feb. 22, 2024
Order
The court ordered Frank Senior and Mott & Bow, Inc. to meet and confer—meaning meet and discuss the case—in a good-faith effort to settle the action. The meeting must last at least one hour and take place within 30 days after service of the summons and complaint.
The parties must discuss whether Senior has satisfied the threshold requirement of standing, which concerns whether a person is legally entitled to bring a case in court. The order cites decisions from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit concerning standing.
If the parties cannot settle themselves, they must discuss whether additional settlement efforts through the district court’s mediation program or through a settlement conference before a magistrate judge would be productive. Within 15 additional days—45 days after service of the summons and complaint—the parties must file a joint letter stating whether they settled. If they did not settle, the letter must ask the court either to refer the case to mediation or a magistrate-judge settlement conference, while indicating a preference, or to proceed with an initial status conference.
Disposition and Effect
The court entered a case-management and settlement order. It did not rule on standing or decide the underlying claims.
Read the full 1-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.