Wendrow et al v. Michigan Department of Human Services et al

Filing 331

ORDER granting 322 Motion to Stay; granting 323 Motion to Stay; denying as moot 330 Motion to Adjourn Trial. Signed by District Judge John Corbett O'Meara. (WBar)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MICHIGAN
SOUTHERN DIVISION

THAL FLAM WENDROW, et al.,
Plaintiffs,
Case No. 08-14324
v.
Hon. John Corbett O’Meara
MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF
HUMAN SERVICES, et al.,
Defendants.
______________________________/

ORDER GRANTING MOTIONS FOR STAY
Before the court are two motions to stay proceedings pending appeal, filed by the
Michigan Department of Human Services defendants and the Walled Lake Consolidated School
District defendants. These defendants are appealing the court’s orders of March 30, 2011, and
March 27, 2012, in which the court denied qualified immunity on certain claims.
Having considered the motions and Plaintiffs’ response, the court is persuaded that it is in
the interest of justice, judicial economy, and efficiency to stay the entire matter pending appeal.
See, e.g., Landis v. North American Co., 299 U.S. 248, 254 (1936) (“[T]he power to stay
proceedings is incidental to the power inherent in every court to control the disposition of the
causes on its docket with economy of time and effort for itself, for counsel, and for litigants.”).
Otherwise, the court and the parties will be in the position of trying a complex and potentially
lengthy case twice. The court understands Plaintiffs’ concern regarding delay; on balance,
however, the court finds multiple, expensive and time-consuming trials to be the greater harm for

all involved.
Therefore, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Defendants’ motions to stay proceedings
pending appeal [docket nos. 322 and 323] are GRANTED.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Defendants Oakland County and David Gorcyca’s
motion to adjourn trial [docket no. 330] is DENIED AS MOOT.

s/John Corbett O'Meara
United States District Judge
Date: July 9, 2012

I hereby certify that a copy of the foregoing document was served upon counsel of record
on this date, July 9, 2012, using the ECF system.

s/William Barkholz
Case Manager

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