Irving H. Picard v. Sage Associates et al, No. 1:2020cv10057 - Document 83 (S.D.N.Y. 2021)

Court Description: ORDER: For the reasons set forth below, the Trustee's request for permission to file a motion for summary judgment is DENIED. For purposes of this Order, the Court assumes familiarity with the facts of this case, which are set out in greater detail in Judge Alison J. Nathan's May 18, 2021, Opinion and Order granting the Defendants' motion to withdraw the bankruptcy reference. See.Picard v. Sage Realty, No. 20 Civ. 10057 (AJN), 2021 WL 1987994, at *1 (S.D.N.Y. May 18, 2021). As relevant here, by letter dated June 14, 2021, the parties to this action agreed that discovery was "complete" and requested that the consolidated cases proceed to a bench trial before Judge Nathan. (June 14, 2021, Letter, ECF No. 23.) On July 1, 2021, Judge Nathan endorsed the parties' proposed pre-trial scheduling order and set a final pre-trial conference for January 5, 2022. (ECF No. 27.) On November 2, 2021, these consolidated cases were re assigned to this Court. F ederal Rule of Civil Procedure ("FRCP") 56(b) states, "[u]nless a different time is set by local rule or the court orders otherwise, a party may file a motion for summary judgment at any time until 30 days after the close of all disc overy." During the Court's December 8, 2021, pre-motion status conference, the Trustee confirmed that discovery in these consolidated cases closed on September 17, 2019. Because more than two years have passed since the close of discover y, any dispositive motion filed by the Trustee would be untimely and procedurally improper. Accordingly, the Court will not entertain summary judgment motion practice at this time. See Cestari v. Bancorp, Inc., 364 F.Supp.3d 327, 329 (S.D.N.Y. 201 9) (denying request for pre-motion conference because "summary judgment motion practice... in this action would be needlessly wasteful of the parties' time and resources, likely futile, and... inconsistent with judicial economy"). The Trustee's request to file a motion for summary judgment is, therefore, DENIED. SO ORDERED. (Signed by Judge John F. Keenan on 12/8/2021) (tg)