Snitzer et al v. The Board of Trustees of the American Federation of Musicians and Employers' Pension Fund et al

Filing 175

ORDER: IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the Depositions are to be disclosed to the class members and posted on the settlement website, no later than July 15, 2020. While the Court agrees that the most probative information is already summarized and disc losed in the existing materials, there is value in allowing class members to review the evidence firsthand. Furthermore, while only three class members requested additional disclosures, the Court has received many more objections to the final appr oval of the settlement, and the added transparency may alleviate some class members' concerns. To the extent that such material could be marshalled in support of non-meritorious objections, counsel has ample opportunity to respond to such obj ections as they arise. The Court, however, finds that further litigation preceding any disclosure of the Notes, which have been requested by only one class member, would unnecessarily delay the fairness hearing and eventual resolution of this case ; the request for the disclosure of the Notes is, therefore, denied. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED THAT Class Counsel's request to disclose the parties' summary judgment statements is denied. The documents were stricken from the record as prematurely submitted. Accordingly, they are neither judicial documents nor evidence. SO ORDERED. (Deposition due by 7/15/2020.) (Signed by Judge Valerie E. Caproni on 7/13/2020) (jca)

Case 1:17-cv-05361-VEC Document 175 Filed 07/13/20 Page 1 of 3

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
ANDREW SNITZER and PAUL LIVANT, individually
and as representatives of a class of similarly situated
persons, on behalf of the American Federation of
Musicians and Employers’ Pension Plan,

USDC SDNY
DOCUMENT
ELECTRONICALLY FILED
DOC #:
DATE FILED: 07/13/2020

Plaintiffs,
v.
THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE AMERICAN
FEDERATION OF MUSICIANS AND EMPLOYERS’
PENSION FUND, THE INVESTMENT COMMITTEE
OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF MUSICIANS AND
EMPLOYERS’ PENSION FUND, RAYMOND M.
HAIR, JR., AUGUSTINO GAGLIARDI, GARY
MATTS, WILLIAM MORIARITY, BRIAN F. ROOD,
LAURA ROSS, VINCE TROMBETTA, PHILLIP E.
YAO, CHRISTOPHER J.G. BROCKMEYER,
MICHAEL DEMARTINI, ELLIOT H. GREENE,
ROBERT W. JOHNSON, ALAN H. RAPHAEL,
JEFFREY RUTHIZER, BILL THOMAS, JOANN
KESSLER, MARION PRESTON,

No. 1:17-cv-5361 (VEC)
ORDER

Defendants.
VALERIE CAPRONI, United States District Judge:
WHEREAS a fairness hearing has been scheduled for August 26, 2020;
WHEREAS three class members have sought disclosure of additional evidence obtained
during discovery in order to evaluate Class Counsel’s performance and the proposed settlement
agreement, which has received preliminary approval in this Court;
WHEREAS the documents sought are the depositions of (i) three Meketa witnesses, (ii)
Rory Albert, (iii) Ray Hair, and (iv) Chris Brockmeyer (“Depositions”), along with notes of
board meetings taken by Plan counsel (“Notes”);

Case 1:17-cv-05361-VEC Document 175 Filed 07/13/20 Page 2 of 3

WHEREAS Defendants oppose the additional disclosure, contending chiefly that the
most relevant information is already captured by the already disclosed expert reports, that public
disclosure could create distraction and fodder for unrelated or non-meritorious disputes, and that
only three class members have requested additional documents, Dkt. 174 at 2–4;
WHEREAS Class Counsel supports disclosure of the Depositions but argues that the
disclosure of the Notes would engender further litigation concerning the scope of the fiduciary
exception to privilege, id. at 9; and
WHEREAS Class Counsel proposes, as an alternative to the Notes, disclosure of the
parties’ respective summary judgment statements, which summarize each side’s arguments and
evidence in a more accessible way, id.;
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the Depositions are to be disclosed to the class members
and posted on the settlement website, no later than July 15, 2020. While the Court agrees that
the most probative information is already summarized and disclosed in the existing materials,
there is value in allowing class members to review the evidence firsthand. Furthermore, while
only three class members requested additional disclosures, the Court has received many more
objections to the final approval of the settlement, and the added transparency may alleviate some
class members’ concerns. To the extent that such material could be marshalled in support of
non-meritorious objections, counsel has ample opportunity to respond to such objections as they
arise. The Court, however, finds that further litigation preceding any disclosure of the Notes,
which have been requested by only one class member, would unnecessarily delay the fairness
hearing and eventual resolution of this case; the request for the disclosure of the Notes is,
therefore, denied.

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Case 1:17-cv-05361-VEC Document 175 Filed 07/13/20 Page 3 of 3

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED THAT Class Counsel’s request to disclose the parties’
summary judgment statements is denied. The documents were stricken from the record as
prematurely submitted. Accordingly, they are neither judicial documents nor evidence.

SO ORDERED.
_________________________________
VALERIE CAPRONI
United States District Judge

Date: July 13, 2020
New York, New York

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