Trevor Burke v. Consolidated Edison Company of New York, Inc.

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK Trevor Burke, Plaintiff, v. 23-CV-2111 (DEH)

Consolidated Edison Company of New York, ORDER Inc., Defendant. DALE E. HO, United States District Judge: The Court is in receipt of Plaintiff’s Letter Motion to Compel. ECF No. 82. Plaintiff Trevor Burke seeks an order directing his former counsel, Maurice Pianko, to transmit his complete client file to his current counsel pursuant to Rule 1.16(e) of the New York Rules of Professional Conduct. “A client presumptively has full access, with narrow exceptions, to the entire attorney’s file in a represented matter, upon termination of the attorney-client relationship.” Sage Realty Corp. v. Proskauer Rose Goetz & Mendelsohn LLP, 91 N.Y.2d 30, 31 (1997). Exceptions include where a “claim for unpaid legal fees is outstanding,” where disclosure of documents “might violate a duty of nondisclosure owed to a third party [or otherwise be contrary to law],” or where “nonaccess would bepermissible as to firm documents intended for internal law office review and use.” Id. Furthermore, “when the attorney’s file is sought in connection with a pending matter, courts also have refused to recognize a property right of the attorney in the file superior to that of the client.” Id. at 36. Pursuant to his obligations under Local Rule 1.4, when Pianko moved to withdraw from his representation of Burke, he notified the Court that he asserts a charging lien, not a retaining lien over any settlement or final judgment in this matter. Decl. of Maurice S. Pianko to Withdraw as Counsel, ECF No. 47-1 4 4. Insofar as Pianko asserts a charging lien over this matter, it is contingent on a settlement or final judgment in Burke’s favor. See ECF No. 82-1 at 2. Pianko has already asserted his right to a charging lien with the Court, and has not asserted any other exception to Burke’s presumptive right of access to his entire client file. See Sage Realty Corp., 91 N.Y.2d at 31. Accordingly, the Court GRANTS Burke’s Motion to Compel. The Court hereby ORDERS Maurice Pianko and Pianko Law Group, PLLC to deliver Burke’s complete client file related to this action to Burke’s current counsel within seven (7) days. The Clerk of Court is respectfully directed to close ECF No. 82. SO ORDERED. Dated: March 16, 2026 New York, New York ee DAA DALE E. HO United States District Judge