Curtis v. Greenberg

CourtDistrict Court, E.D. New York
DecidedJanuary 19, 2022
Docket1:20-cv-00824
StatusUnknown

This text of Curtis v. Greenberg (Curtis v. Greenberg) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Curtis v. Greenberg, (E.D.N.Y. 2022).

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK -------------------------------------------------------x W. ROBERT CURTIS, ESQ.,

Plaintiff, MEMORANDUM & ORDER - against - 20-CV-824 (PKC) (LB)

TERESA P. GREENBERG, ESQ., THE LAW OFFICE OF YEUNG & WANG, P.L.L.C., WILLIAM J. LARKIN, III, ESQ., LARKIN, INGRASSIA, & TEPERMAYSTER, L.L.P., TODD A. KELSON, ESQ., TODD A. KELSON, P.C., MISHAEL M. PINE, ESQ., RONALD A. BERUTTI, ESQ., WEINER LAW GROUP, L.L.P., JEFFREY SALTIEL, ESQ., WENIG, SALTIEL, L.L.P., GREGORY SHEINDLIN, ESQ., SHEINDLIN LAW OFFICE, and NILOUFER BASSA,

Defendants. -------------------------------------------------------x PAMELA K. CHEN, United States District Judge: Plaintiff, an attorney proceeding pro se, filed the Second Amended Complaint (“SAC”) in this case on July 27, 2020. The SAC alleged violations of state law and the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (“RICO”) Act, 18 U.S.C. §§ 1962(c) and (d), by Defendants Teresa Greenberg, Esq. and the Law Office of Yeung & Wang, P.L.L.C. (collectively, the “Greenberg Defendants”); William Larkin, III, Esq. and the law firm Larkin, Ingrassia, & Tepermayster, L.L.P. (collectively, the “Larkin Defendants”); Todd Kelson, Esq. and the law firm Todd A. Kelson, P.C. (collectively, the “Kelson Defendants”); Ronald Berutti, Esq. and the Weiner Law Group, L.L.P. (collectively, the “Berutti Defendants”); Jeffrey Saltiel, Esq. and the law firm Wenig Saltiel, L.L.P. (collectively, the “Saltiel Defendants”); Gregory Sheindlin, Esq. and the Sheindlin Law Office (collectively, the “Sheindlin Defendants”); Mishael M. Pine, Esq.; and Niloufer Bassa. In addition to the substantive RICO claims, Plaintiff alleged conspiracy to commit RICO violations, breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, common law fraud, and violations of New York General Business Law Section 349, against various defendants. (SAC Volume II (“SAC II”), Dkt. 52-1 ¶¶ 505, 539–82.) He also appeared to allege a separate malpractice claim. (See, e.g., id. ¶¶ 571–74.) Each defendant moved to dismiss for failure to state a claim. (See Dkts. 72,

90, 94, 98, 101, 106, 107, 112.) On September 23, 2021, the Court granted Defendants’ motions to dismiss (“September 23 Order”). Curtis v. Greenberg, No. 20-CV-824 (PKC) (LB), 2021 WL 4340788, at *19 (E.D.N.Y. Sept. 23, 2021). It dismissed Plaintiff’s RICO claims with prejudice and declined to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over Plaintiff’s state law claims. Id. at 18–29. On October 21, 2021, Plaintiff moved for reconsideration under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 59(e). (See Motion for Reconsideration (“Recon. Br.”), Dkt. 125-1, at 1.) The motion for reconsideration was fully briefed on December 15, 2021. (See Dkts. 125–137.)1 LEGAL STANDARD

Federal Rule of Civil Procedure “59(e) allows a litigant to file a ‘motion to alter or amend a judgment.’” Banister v. Davis, 140 S. Ct. 1698, 1703 (2020) (quoting Fed. R. Civ. P. 59(e)). “A party may move for reconsideration and obtain relief only when the party identifies an intervening change of controlling law, the availability of new evidence, or the need to correct a clear error or prevent manifest injustice.” Cho v. Blackberry Ltd., 991 F.3d 155, 170 (2d Cir. 2021) (brackets omitted). “The standard for granting such a motion is strict, and reconsideration will generally be denied unless the moving party can point to controlling decisions or data that the court overlooked

1 More detail regarding the allegations and procedural history in this case is available in the Court’s prior decision: Curtis, 2021 WL 4340788. – matters, in other words, that might reasonably be expected to alter the conclusion reached by the court.” Id. “Rule 59 is not a vehicle for relitigating old issues, presenting the case under new theories, securing a rehearing on the merits, or otherwise taking a second bite at the apple.” Analytical Survs., Inc. v. Tonga Partners, L.P., 684 F.3d 36, 52 (2d Cir. 2012) (quotations and ellipsis

omitted), as amended (July 13, 2012). “[C]ourts will not address new arguments or evidence that the moving party could have raised before the decision issued.” Banister, 140 S. Ct. at 1703 (citing 11 C. Wright, A. Miller, & M. Kane, Federal Practice and Procedure § 2810.1, pp. 163–64 (3d ed. 2012)). “The time for [seeking reconsideration under Rule 59] is short—28 days from entry of the judgment, with no possibility of an extension.” Id. (citing Fed. R. Civ. P. 6(b)(2)). Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 60(b)(3), “the court may relieve a party or its legal representative from a final judgment, order, or proceeding” for reasons of “fraud . . . , misrepresentation, or misconduct by an opposing party.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 60(b)(3). “A motion under [Rule 60(b)(3)] must be made . . . no more than a year after the entry of the judgment or

order or the date of the proceeding.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 60(c)(1). Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 60(b)(6), “the court may relieve a party or its legal representative from a final judgment, order, or proceeding” for “any other reason that justifies relief.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 60(b)(6). Although “Rule 60(b) vests wide discretion in courts, . . . relief under Rule 60(b)(6) is available only in extraordinary circumstances.” Buck v. Davis, 137 S. Ct. 759, 777 (2017) (quotations omitted). “In determining whether extraordinary circumstances are present, a court may consider a wide range of factors.” Id. at 778. “These may include, in an appropriate case, the risk of injustice to the parties and the risk of undermining the public’s confidence in the judicial process.” Id. (quotations omitted). “A motion under [Rule 60(b)(6)] must be made within a reasonable time . . . .” Fed. R. Civ. P. 60(c)(1). DISCUSSION Plaintiff seeks reconsideration on three grounds: (I) that the “Court made a fatal ruling on May 7, 2020 when it determined that the attorney-Defendants would be permitted to continue to

conceal Plaintiff’s files”; (II) that the Court’s September 23 Order “misstates the identity of, and interconnections among, the entities of Enterprise 2”; and (III) that the September 23 Order “misperceives the interactions between Guardian Pine and Plaintiff” by “convert[ing] the psychological concept of ‘substituted decision-making[]’ . . . into a concept of ‘interference.’” (Recon. Br., Dkt. 125-1, at 2–3, 26–27.) I. Plaintiff’s First Argument On April 13, 2020, Plaintiff moved to compel the production of files that he alleged Defendants had “withheld in violation of New York Law.” (Dkt. 19, at ECF2 1.) On May 7, 2020, Magistrate Judge Lois Bloom denied the motion to compel as premature. (See Dkt.

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Bluebook (online)
Curtis v. Greenberg, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/curtis-v-greenberg-nyed-2022.