Z VIEW ENTERPRISES, LLC et al v. GIANT EAGLE, INC.

Filing 341

ORDER granting plaintiffs' motion 270 to file a 2nd supplemental complaint - plaintiffs shall file their 2nd supplemental complaint as proposed & attached to the instant motion 270 -1 forthwith & deft shall respond thereto in acc w/ the FRCP. (See order for complete details.) Signed by Christopher C. Conner on 11/22/19. (kmMD)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA
SEVEN Z ENTERPRISES, INC.,
et al.,
Plaintiffs
v.
GIANT EAGLE, INC.,
Defendant

:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:

CIVIL ACTION NO. 2:17-CV-740
(Chief Judge Conner)

ORDER
AND NOW, this 22nd day of November, 2019, upon consideration of plaintiffs’
motion (Doc. 270) for leave to file a second supplemental complaint, and the parties’
briefing with respect thereto, (Docs. 271, 274, 288), and the court observing that
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 15(d) allows—with court approval—“a party to
serve a supplemental pleading setting out any . . . event[s] that happened after the
date of the pleading to be supplemented,” FED. R. CIV. P. 15(d), and the court
further observing that “requests to supplement pleadings should be freely granted
to permit the economic resolution of all related disputes between parties,” CocaCola Bottling Co. of Elizabethtown, Inc. v. Coca-Cola Co., 668 F. Supp. 906, 923 (D.
Del. 1987), and that the decision whether to permit a supplemental pleading is
committed to the sound discretion of the district court, see Hassoun v. Cimmino,
126 F. Supp. 2d 353, 360 (D.N.J. 2000), and that courts will generally grant leave to
file a supplemental pleading when “the supplemental facts [or claims] are
connected to the original pleading,” id. at 361, unless an opposing party shows

undue delay, bad faith on the part of the movant, or prejudice to the nonmoving
party, see id.; Kounelis v. Sherrer, 396 F. Supp. 2d 525, 529 (D.N.J. 2005), and,
following review of the proposed supplemental facts and claims, (see Doc. 270-1),
and upon examining defendant’s concerns with respect to the ever-expanding scope
of this litigation, (see Doc. 274 at 2-3), 1 and the court concluding that the
supplemental facts and claims are connected to the first supplemental complaint
(Doc. 79) and that the interest of justice favors granting leave to file a supplemental
pleading under the circumstances, it is hereby ORDERED that plaintiffs’ motion
(Doc. 270) to file a second supplemental complaint is GRANTED. Plaintiffs shall file
their second supplemental complaint as proposed and attached to the instant
motion, (see Doc. 270-1), forthwith, and defendant shall respond thereto in
accordance with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

/S/ CHRISTOPHER C. CONNER
Christopher C. Conner, Chief Judge
United States District Court
Middle District of Pennsylvania

1

We are likewise troubled by the seemingly unending expansion of this
litigation, the parties’ frequent and contentious discovery disputes, excessive
motion practice, and the resultant expenditure of considerable judicial resources.
As we have informed the parties during numerous teleconferences, this litigation
needs to move forward. That can only happen, however, if the pleadings close. In
light of the instant order, that day is not today. Nevertheless, any further requests
to supplement the pleadings in this case will be carefully scrutinized and will only
be granted upon a showing of good cause.