Vellon v. The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. et al

Filing 39

INITIAL CASE MANAGEMENT ORDER: Defendants shall file their answer no later than November 21, 2023. Amended pleadings may not be filed and additional parties may not be joined except with leave of the Court. Any motion to amend or to join addit ional parties pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 15(a) shall be filed no later than December 14, 2023. Any motion to amend or to join additional parties filed after the deadline in this paragraph will be subject to the "good cause" standard in Fe d. R. Civ. P. 16(b)(4). The parties shall exchange the disclosures required by Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)(1) no later than November 30, 2023. The parties shall serve their initial requests for production of documents and any initial interrogatories (i n compliance with Local Rule 33.3(a)) no later than December 14, 2023. All remaining fact discovery reasonably necessary to resolve the viability of plaintiff's sole federal claim, brought under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), shall be completed no later than March 14, 2024. Judge Moses will conduct a status conference on March 13, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. No later than March 11, 2024, the parties shall submit a joint status letter outlining, as further set forth herein. All cou rt conferences, hearings, and other proceedings will be held in Courtroom 20A of the Daniel Patrick Moynihan United States Courthouse, unless the Court orders otherwise. If a proceeding takes place via teleconference, the parties must call (888) 557- 8511 on their scheduled date, a few minutes before their scheduled time, and enter the access code 7746387. In accordance with Fed. R. Civ. P. 30(b)(4), the Courtauthorizes the parties to conduct any or all depositions in this action via telephone, videoconference, or other remote means, pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 30(b)(3) and(b)(4). This Order does not dispense with the requirements set forth in Fed. R. Civ.P. 30(b)(5), including the requirement that, unless the parties stipulate otherwise,th e deposition be 'conducted before an officer appointed or designated under Rule28," and that the deponent be placed under oath by that officer. For avoidance ofdoubt, a deposition will be deemed to have been conducted "before" an officer solong as that officer attends the deposition via the same remote means (e.g.,telephone conference call or video conference) used to connect all other remoteparticipants, and so long as all participants (including the officer) can clearly hea rand be heard by all other participants. Any application for extension or adjournment of thetime limits, deadlines or conferences set forth above must be made by letter-motion,in accordance with this Court's Individual Practices, as soon as t he need for theextension or adjournment is reasonably apparent to the party making the application. Applications made after the expiration of the deadline in questionmay be summarily denied, as further set forth in this Order. The disclosure of docum ents or information (electronic or otherwise) subject to the attorney-client privilege, the work product doctrine, or other privilege or immunity from production shall not operate as a waiver of that privilege or immunity in this case or in any oth er federal or state proceeding. This paragraph shall be interpreted to provide the maximum protection permitted by Fed. R. Evid. 502(d). SO ORDERED. Dairyland USA Corporation answer due 11/21/2023; John Doe answer due 11/21/2023; The Chefs&# 039; Warehouse, Inc. answer due 11/21/2023.( Fact Discovery due by 3/14/2024., Motions due by 12/14/2023., Status Conference set for 3/13/2024 at 10:00 AM in Courtroom 20A, 500 Pearl Street, New York, NY 10007 before Magistrate Judge Barbara C. Moses.) (Signed by Magistrate Judge Barbara C. Moses on 11/14/2023) (vfr)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK

11/14/2023

NOUCHIE VELLON,
Plaintiff,
-againstTHE CHEFS' WAREHOUSE, INC., et al.,

22-CV-4809 (LTS) (BCM)
INITIAL CASE MANAGEMENT
ORDER

Defendants.
BARBARA MOSES, United States Magistrate Judge.
After consultation with the parties, the Court adopts the following case management and
scheduling order pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 16:
1.

Answer. Defendants shall file their answer no later than November 21, 2023.

2.

Joinder and Amendment. Amended pleadings may not be filed and additional
parties may not be joined except with leave of the Court. Any motion to amend or
to join additional parties pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 15(a) shall be filed no later than
December 14, 2023. Any motion to amend or to join additional parties filed after
the deadline in this paragraph will be subject to the "good cause" standard in Fed.
R. Civ. P. 16(b)(4).

3.

Automatic Disclosures. The parties shall exchange the disclosures required by Fed.
R. Civ. P. 26(a)(1) no later than November 30, 2023.

4.

Written Discovery. The parties shall serve their initial requests for production of
documents and any initial interrogatories (in compliance with Local Rule 33.3(a))
no later than December 14, 2023.

5.

Depositions and Additional Fact Discovery. All remaining fact discovery
reasonably necessary to resolve the viability of plaintiff's sole federal claim,
brought under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), shall be completed no later
than March 14, 2024.

6.

Status Conference. Judge Moses will conduct a status conference on March 13,
2024, at 10:00 a.m. No later than March 11, 2024, the parties shall submit a joint
status letter outlining (i) the progress of discovery to date, (ii) their respective views
as to the viability of the FCRA claim, and (iii) if they disagree as to the FCRA
claim, a proposed schedule for any targeted motion practice as to that claim. The
parties shall also advise the Court whether they have engaged in any settlement
efforts and how the Court can assist in that regard.

7.

Timely Discovery. Discovery requests and notices must be served in time to allow
the person served to respond, on the schedule set forth in the Federal Rules of Civil

Procedure, prior to the completion date for such discovery set forth above.
Discovery applications, including letter-motions requesting discovery conferences,
must be made promptly after the need for such an application arises and must
comply with Local Civil Rule 37.2 and § 2(b) of Judge Moses's Individual
Practices. Absent extraordinary circumstances, discovery applications made later
than 30 days prior to the close of discovery may be denied as untimely.
8.

Conferences and Hearings. All court conferences, hearings, and other proceedings
will be held in Courtroom 20A of the Daniel Patrick Moynihan United States
Courthouse, unless the Court orders otherwise. If a proceeding takes place via
teleconference, the parties must call [phone] on their scheduled date, a few
minutes before their scheduled time, and enter the access code 7746387. Please
treat the teleconference as you would treat a public court appearance. If a
conference or hearing in another matter is ongoing, please be silent (mute your
line) until your case is called. If the proceeding takes place via videoconference,
chambers will email the appropriate link to counsel in advance of the proceeding.

9.

Remote Depositions. In accordance with Fed. R. Civ. P. 30(b)(4), the Court
authorizes the parties to conduct any or all depositions in this action via telephone,
videoconference, or other remote means, pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 30(b)(3) and
(b)(4). This Order does not dispense with the requirements set forth in Fed. R. Civ.
P. 30(b)(5), including the requirement that, unless the parties stipulate otherwise,
the deposition be "conducted before an officer appointed or designated under Rule
28," and that the deponent be placed under oath by that officer. For avoidance of
doubt, a deposition will be deemed to have been conducted "before" an officer so
long as that officer attends the deposition via the same remote means (e.g.,
telephone conference call or video conference) used to connect all other remote
participants, and so long as all participants (including the officer) can clearly hear
and be heard by all other participants.

10.

Extensions and Adjournments. Any application for extension or adjournment of the
time limits, deadlines or conferences set forth above must be made by letter-motion,
in accordance with this Court's Individual Practices, as soon as the need for the
extension or adjournment is reasonably apparent to the party making the
application. Applications made after the expiration of the deadline in question
may be summarily denied.

11.

Discovery of ESI. If they have not already done so, counsel are hereby directed to
confer with one another by telephone or in person within two weeks of the date of
this Order regarding potential discovery issues concerning electronically stored
information (ESI). An exchange of letters or emails is not sufficient. Counsel must
discuss, among other things, sources of relevant ESI; steps taken or to be taken to
preserve relevant ESI; identification of appropriate custodians; ESI search and
review procedures; form of production of ESI; any limitations or anticipated
difficulties regarding discovery or production of ESI; cost estimates; and proposals
for containing or sharing costs.

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12.

Discovery Applications. Discovery disputes that cannot be resolved after goodfaith negotiations may be presented by letter-motion, seeking a discovery
conference, in accordance with Local Civil Rule 37.2 and this Court's Individual
Practices. Such applications must be made promptly after the need for court
intervention arises, but in no event before the parties have met and conferred, in
person or via telephone, with respect to all issues in dispute. An exchange of letters
or emails is not sufficient. It is the Court's practice to decide discovery disputes at
the Rule 37.2 conference, based on the parties' letters, unless the Court determines
that more formal briefing is required.

13.

Fed. R. Evid. 502(d) Order. The disclosure of documents or information (electronic
or otherwise) subject to the attorney-client privilege, the work product doctrine, or
other privilege or immunity from production shall not operate as a waiver of that
privilege or immunity in this case or in any other federal or state proceeding. This
paragraph shall be interpreted to provide the maximum protection permitted by Fed.
R. Evid. 502(d).

Dated: New York, New York
November 14, 2023

SO ORDERED.

________________________________
BARBARA MOSES
United States Magistrate Judge

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