De Fernandez v. Seaboard Marine Ltd

District Court, S.D. Florida·Decided April 25, 2023·No. 1:20-cv-25176·Unknown

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA

Case No. 20-cv-25176-BLOOM/Otazo-Reyes

ODETTE BLANCO DE FERNANDEZ née BLANCO ROSELL,

Plaintiff, v.

SEABOARD MARINE, LTD.,

Defendant. _____________________________________/

ORDER ON MOTION TO INTERVENE

THIS CAUSE is before the Court upon the Consolidated Motion and Memorandum of Law to Intervene, ECF No. [303] (“Motion”), filed by non-parties Crowley Holdings, Inc., Crowley Maritime Corp., Crowley Liner Services, Inc., Crowley Latin America Services, LLC, Crowley Logistics, Inc., MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company S.A., Mediterranean Shipping Company (USA) Inc., CMA CGM S.A., and CMA CGM (AMERICA) LLC (“Intervenors”), on March 27, 2023. Plaintiff Odette Blanco De Fernandez née Blanco Rosell (“Plaintiff”) filed an “Agreed Response in Opposition.” ECF No. [327]. Intervenors filed a Consolidated Reply. ECF No. [332]. Plaintiff filed a Motion to File a Sur-Reply.1 ECF No. [333]. The Court has considered the Motion, the Response, the Reply, the record in this case, the applicable law, and is otherwise fully advised. For the reasons set forth below, Intervenor’s Motion is granted, and Plaintiff’s Motion to File a Sur-Reply is denied.

1 The purpose of the requested Sur-Reply is to correct a misstatement by Intervenors and clarify that Defendant joins Plaintiff in opposing intervention. The Court surmised as much from Plaintiff’s “Agreed Response in Opposition.” ECF No. [327]. I. BACKGROUND On December 20, 2020, Plaintiff initiated this action against Defendant Seaboard Marine, Ltd. (“Defendant”) to recover damages and interest under the Helms-Burton Act for trafficking in

property confiscated by the Cuban Government. See ECF No. [1]; see also ECF No. [45] (“Amended Complaint”). According to the Amended Complaint, Plaintiff and her four siblings (collectively, “Blanco Rosell Siblings”) owned various corporations and assets in Cuba that were confiscated by the Cuban Government in 1960. See ECF No. [45] ¶¶ 4, 14, 66. Plaintiff, the estates of the four Blanco Rosell Siblings, and the descendants of the four Blanco Rosell Siblings sought to hold Defendant liable under for “trafficking” in the Confiscated Property. See 22 U.S.C. § 6082(a)(1)(A). On July 27, 2021, the Court dismissed the claims of the estates and heirs of Plaintiff’s deceased brothers, leaving Plaintiff as the sole plaintiff in this case. ECF No. [66] (“Motion to Dismiss Order”). On August 19, 2022, the Court granted summary judgment in favor of Defendant

in a 37-page Order. ECF No. [268] (“Summary Judgment Order”); ECF No. [270] (“Final Judgment”). Plaintiff appealed the Summary Judgment Order and Final Judgment, and the heirs of Plaintiff’s deceased brothers appealed the Court’s Motion to Dismiss Order. ECF No. [271]. The Appeal is pending before the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, Case No. 22-12966. On September 28, 2022, the Eleventh Circuit scheduled the Appeal for mandatory mediation. ECF No. [302-1]. During mediation, the parties reached a settlement agreement that is expressly conditioned upon this Court vacating the Summary Judgment Order and Final Judgment. ECF No. [302] at 3. Accordingly, on March 24, 2023, Plaintiff filed before this Court an Agreed Motion to Vacate Summary Judgment and Final Judgment. ECF No. [302] (“Motion to Vacate”). Therein, Plaintiff, with Defendant’s agreement, requests that the Court issue an Order indicating that the Court intends to vacate its Summary Judgment Order and Final Judgment, so that the parties can

petition the Eleventh Circuit to remand for that purpose. Id. at 4 (citing Fed. R. Civ. P. 60(b)). Intervenors filed their Motion three days later. See ECF No. [303]. Therein, Intervenors request leave to intervene for the limited purpose of opposing the Motion to Vacate. They argue that their request to intervene should be granted as of right under Fed. R. Civ. P. 24(a) because they have a protectable interest due to the Summary Judgment Order’s preclusive effects in other cases in which Intervenors are defendants. Id. at 10. In the alternative, Intervenors request permissive intervention pursuant to Rule 24(b). Id. at 17. In opposition, Plaintiff argues that Intervenors have no right to intervene because the potential preclusive effect of this Court’s Summary Judgment Order is not a cognizable interest that would support Rule 24(a) intervention. ECF No. [327] at 4. Plaintiff further opposes

permissive intervention under Rule 24(b) because such intervention would substantially prejudice the parties. Id. at 9. II. LEGAL STANDARD “Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 24, a party may seek to intervene of right or with the permission of the district court.” Loyd v. Ala. Dep’t of Corrs., 176 F.3d 1336, 1339 (11th Cir. 1999) (footnote call numbers omitted). “A party seeking to intervene as of right under Rule 24(a)(2) must show that: (1) his application to intervene is timely; (2) he has an interest relating to the property or transaction which is the subject of the action; (3) he is so situated that disposition of the action, as a practical matter, may impede or impair his ability to protect that interest; and (4) his interest is represented inadequately by the existing parties to the suit.” Chiles v. Thornburgh, 865 F.2d 1197, 1213 (11th Cir. 1989) (citation omitted). “Once a party establishes all the prerequisites to intervention, the district court has no discretion to deny the motion.” United States v. State of Ga., 19 F.3d 1388, 1393 (11th Cir.1994).

As for permissive intervention, “[p]ermissive intervention under Fed. R. Civ. Proc. 24(b) is appropriate where a party's claim or defense and the main action have a question of law or fact in common and the intervention will not unduly prejudice or delay the adjudication of the rights of the original parties.” Mt. Hawley Ins. Co. v. Sandy Lake Props., 425 F.3d 1308, 1312 (11th Cir. 2005) (quoting Georgia v. U.S. Army Corps of Eng'rs, 302 F.3d 1242, 1250 (11th Cir. 2002)). “If there is no right to intervene under Rule 24(a), it is wholly discretionary with the court whether to allow intervention under Rule 24(b) and even though there is a common question of law or fact, or the requirements of Rule 24(b) are otherwise satisfied, the court may refuse to allow intervention.” Purcell v. BankAtlantic Fin. Corp., 85 F.3d 1508, 1513 (11th Cir. 1996) (quoting Worlds v. Dep't of Health & Rehab. Servs., 929 F.2d 591, 595 (11th Cir. 1991)).

III. DISCUSSION A. Rule 24(a) The Court begins with Intervenors’ Motion to intervene as of right under Rule 24(a). Intervenors argue that their Motion is timely because it was filed “the very next business day after” the Motion to Vacate was filed. ECF No. [303] at 10.

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