That's What She Said, Inc. v. Gutter Games, Inc.
- Katherine Failla
- 1:22-cv-04230
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In That's What She Said, Inc. v. Gutter Games, Judge Failla gave plaintiff more time to correct summary-judgment filings instead of deciding defendants’ motion.
That's What She Said, Inc. must file a corrected factual statement and amended opposition by May 31, 2024. Gutter Games, Inc. and Perch UK 1 Ltd. may seek permission to file amended reply papers and may seek fees and costs associated with them.
What happened
In That's What She Said, Inc. v. Gutter Games, Inc., the defendants asked for summary judgment, which would resolve the case without a trial if no important factual dispute existed. The plaintiff opposed the request but did not file the required statement responding to the defendants’ list of material facts under the court’s local rules.
The court said it could treat the defendants’ facts as admitted and decide the motion on that basis. Instead, it gave the plaintiff limited additional time to file a compliant response and to submit an amended opposition brief using the required factual citations. The court said it would not grant more time unless there were compelling circumstances.
Judge Katherine Polk Failla did not decide the defendants’ summary-judgment motion. She ordered the plaintiff to file the corrected materials by May 31, 2024, allowed the defendants to request permission to file an amended reply, and said the plaintiff might have to pay fees and costs associated with any necessary amended reply.
The detailed version
- That's What She Said, Inc. v. Gutter Games, Inc. · No. 1:22-cv-04230
- Katherine Failla
- May 22, 2024
Background
Defendants Gutter Games, Inc. and Perch UK 1 Ltd. moved for summary judgment. Summary judgment is a procedure for resolving claims without a trial when the relevant facts are not genuinely disputed. The defendants submitted a statement of material facts under Local Civil Rule 56.1(a), along with supporting papers. That's What She Said, Inc. opposed the motion but did not submit a numbered statement responding to the defendants’ factual statement, as required by Local Civil Rule 56.1(b).
Court’s Analysis
Local Civil Rule 56.1(c) provides that facts in a moving party’s statement are treated as admitted unless the opposing party controverts them in the required response. The court noted that other courts have treated a non-movant’s failure to file the required response as grounds to deem the moving party’s facts admitted and grant summary judgment. The court also noted its discretion to overlook noncompliance with local rules. The opinion states that the plaintiff had previously been given opportunities to remedy noncompliance with legal obligations.
Order
The court did not deem the defendants’ facts admitted and did not rule on the merits of the summary-judgment motion. Instead, it ordered That's What She Said, Inc. to file by May 31, 2024, a statement responding to the defendants’ Rule 56.1 statement. It also ordered the plaintiff to file an amended memorandum opposing summary judgment, converting its factual record citations to citations to the new Rule 56.1 statement rather than to the declarations of Richard Mooney and Dan Myers. The court stated that the amended memorandum should not present new arguments and that it would grant no extension absent compelling circumstances.
The court instructed defendants that, if they wished to file amended reply papers, they should request permission by letter within two weeks after the plaintiff filed its compliant materials. The court also stated that it might consider an application requiring the plaintiff to pay defendants’ fees and costs for any amended reply papers made necessary by the plaintiff’s failure to comply with the local rules. Judge Katherine Polk Failla signed the order.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.