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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

FOR THE DISTRICT OF PUERTO RICO 

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CENTRO DE PERIODISMO INVESTIGATIVO, 

 Plaintiff, 

v. 

FINANCIAL OVERSIGHT AND MANAGEMENT 

BOARD FOR PUERTO RICO, 

Defendant. 

No. 3:17-cv-01743 (JAG) 

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MOTION TO REASSIGN CASE TO JUDGE LAURA TAYLOR SWAIN 

To the Honorable United States District Judge Jay A. Garcia-Gregory: 

Pursuant to Local Rule 3A, Defendant Financial Oversight and Management Board for 

Puerto Rico (the “FOMB”) respectfully submits this Motion to Reassign the above-captioned 

action to the Honorable Laura Taylor Swain as a related case to the pending proceedings under 

Title III of the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act (“PROMESA”), 

48 U.S.C. §§ 2101-2241. As detailed below, reassignment of this matter is warranted and 

necessary in order to fulfill PROMESA’s purposes, to serve the interests of judicial economy, 

and to avoid the risk of inconsistent rulings. In support of this motion, the FOMB1

 states as 

follows: 

PRELIMINARY STATEMENT

1. In 2016, Congress enacted PROMESA in light of the unprecedented fiscal crisis 

in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico (the “Commonwealth”). See 48 U.S.C. § 2101 et seq.

 

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 The FOMB reserves all of its rights to move, answer, or otherwise respond to the 

Complaint filed in this action in accordance with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. 

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2. PROMESA established the FOMB, whose purpose is to provide a method for 

Puerto Rico to achieve fiscal responsibility and to obtain access to capital markets. PROMESA 

§§ 101(a), 101(b)(1). To that end, Congress empowered the FOMB to determine, in its sole 

discretion, whether to certify a Fiscal Plan as meeting the requirements outlined in PROMESA. 

Id. §§ 101(a), 201. 

3. Upon certification of a Fiscal Plan and satisfaction of other conditions, 

PROMESA empowers the FOMB to petition, as representative of the Commonwealth and its 

instrumentalities, for adjustment of debts under Title III of PROMESA. Id. §§ 302, 304, 315(b). 

To date, the FOMB has filed four such Title III petitions in the District of Puerto Rico as 

representative of the respective debtors in those proceedings (collectively, the “Title III 

Proceedings”) as follows: 

a. On May 3, 2017, the FOMB filed a petition under Title III of PROMESA 

on behalf of the Commonwealth (Case No. 17-BK-3283-LTS) (the 

“Commonwealth Proceeding”); 

b. On May 5, 2017, the FOMB filed a petition under Title III of PROMESA 

on behalf of the Puerto Rico Sales Tax Financing Corporation, known as 

“COFINA” (Case No. 17-BK-3284-LTS) (the “COFINA Proceeding”); 

c. On May 21, 2017, the FOMB filed a petition under Title III of PROMESA 

on behalf of the Puerto Rico Highways and Transportation Authority 

(Case No. 17-BK-3567-LTS) (the “HTA Proceeding”); and 

d. Also on May 21, 2017, the FOMB filed a petition under Title III of 

PROMESA on behalf of the Employees Retirement System of the 

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Government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico (Case No. 17-BK3566-LTS) (the “ERS Proceeding”). 

4. Pursuant to 48 U.S.C. § 2168, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the 

United States designated the Honorable Laura Taylor Swain to preside over the Commonwealth 

Proceeding. In addition, the Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the First 

Circuit designated Judge Swain to preside over the HTA Proceeding and the ERS Proceeding in 

the District of Puerto Rico. On June 1, 2017, Judge Swain entered an order granting the 

FOMB’s request to jointly administer the COFINA Proceeding with the Commonwealth 

Proceeding. [Case No. 17-3283-LTS, D.I. 242.] 

5. In addition to the Title III Proceedings, Judge Swain also presides over 11 

adversary proceedings filed pursuant to the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure (applicable 

to the Title III Proceedings pursuant to PROMESA § 310), including cases against the respective 

debtors represented by the FOMB and against the FOMB itself, as well as others. 

6. PROMESA also incorporates several provisions of the Bankruptcy Code, 

including the automatic stay on litigation against the debtor and officers and inhabitants of the 

debtor. PROMESA § 301; 11 U.S.C. §§ 362, 922(a). 

7. The FOMB—both in its capacity as representative of the debtors in the Title III 

Proceedings, and directly—has been served with multiple discovery requests in the Title III 

Proceedings and the related adversary proceedings. See, e.g., Bank of New York Mellon v. 

COFINA, Adv. No. 17-133-LTS (D.P.R. Bankr.) [D.I. 179 (notice of subpoena to the FOMB).] 

The FOMB expects that the scope of these discovery requests will be the subject of motion 

practice before Judge Swain. 

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8. On June 1, 2017, Plaintiff Centro de Periodismo Investigativo (“CPI”) filed the 

instant case, seeking declaratory and injunctive relief requiring the FOMB to produce broad 

categories of documents to CPI. [D.I. 1.] Among other things, CPI seeks discovery of all 

“[c]ommunications, [] documents or information” exchanged between the FOMB and the 

Government of Puerto Rico. Id. at 21. 

9. This case should be reassigned to Judge Swain in the interest of justice, to ensure 

judicial efficiency in both this action and in the Title III Proceedings, and because this case is 

related to the Title III Proceedings.2 

10. Reassignment of the case to Judge Swain will promote judicial efficiency and 

save substantial judicial effort by avoiding piecemeal and potentially conflicting resolution of the 

scope of any discovery permitted from the FOMB and of stay motions. 

ARGUMENT 

11. PROMESA contemplates a single forum to decide issues relating to the Title III 

Proceedings—including the scope of discovery from the FOMB arising out of and directly 

related to the Title III Proceedings. PROMESA provides a mechanism for a single judge to be 

designated to preside over a Title III Proceeding for a territory or its instrumentalities, 

PROMESA § 308, which has in fact occurred in the Commonwealth Proceeding, the HTA 

Proceeding, and the ERS Proceeding. PROMESA also provides for the joint administration of 

cases, id. § 304(g), which has in fact occurred in the COFINA Proceeding. 

 

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 While the complaint, which makes claims for disclosure of documents pursuant to the 

Puerto Rico Constitution, does its best to avoid appearing to be related to PROMESA and 

proceedings brought under PROMESA, it cannot avoid the fact that a ruling on the 

claims must take into consideration, among other things, the FOMB’s charter and role 

under PROMESA, the immunities granted to the FOMB under PROMESA and how 

production of documents of the sort sought will affect the FOMB in meeting its 

obligations under PROMESA.

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12. Importantly, the logic of PROMESA plainly contemplates the consolidation of 

any litigation “related to” the Title III Proceedings, both across federal district courts and within 

the District of Puerto Rico, before a single judge. Cases that arise under or relate to the Title III 

Proceedings are required to be transferred to this District. Id. § 306(d)(3). While there is no 

express requirement that cases arising under or relating to the Title III Proceedings, and filed in 

another District, must be transferred to Judge Swain, the logic behind the requirement that the 

case be transferred to this District (§ 306(d)(3)) requires that the case be transferred to Judge 

Swain. An assignment to another District Judge undermines the very purpose of § 306(d)(3). 

PROMESA also contemplates bringing related litigation directly as adversary proceedings under 

the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure, which apply to all cases “arising in or related to” 

Title III cases, id. § 310, and which permit claims seeking declaratory or injunctive relief, see

Fed. R. Bankr. P. 7001(7). 

13. Moreover, pursuant to the Local Rules, even cases that are unrelated should be 

reassigned if doing so will promote the interest of justice and efficiency. Local Rule 3A(b). 

Where different cases involve similar questions of fact and the same questions of law, and 

reassignment will save substantial judicial effort, the Local Rules permit reassignment and 

consolidation of actions with the consent of the receiving judge. Local Rule 3A(b), (d).3

 

14. Here, this case should be reassigned to Judge Swain to address, as a threshold 

issue, whether it may proceed in view of the automatic stay incorporated into the Title III 

Proceedings through the Bankruptcy Code. The stay bars litigation against the debtor—

including the Commonwealth—and against officers and inhabitants of the debtor. PROMESA § 

301; 11 U.S.C. §§ 362, 922(a). Because the FOMB is the representative of the Commonwealth 

 

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 The FOMB is contemporaneously filing an informative motion with Judge Swain in the 

Commonwealth Proceeding pursuant to Local Rule 3A(b). 

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in the Commonwealth Proceeding, PROMESA §§ 101, 315(b), whether this litigation may 

proceed is a question for Judge Swain to decide as the designated Title III judge. 

15. The reassignment of this case to Judge Swain is also appropriate because the 

discovery sought from the FOMB implicates PROMESA and affects the Title III Proceedings. 

For example, the subject matter of the documents which CPI seeks from the FOMB arises from 

and relates to the Title III Proceedings. The FOMB was established to certify a Fiscal Plan for 

the Commonwealth (and as appropriate for its instrumentalities) and to petition for the 

adjustment of debts. CPI seeks documents that go to the heart of the FOMB’s functions in the 

certification of the Fiscal Plan and the petitions for adjustment of debts. 

16. In order to resolve CPI’s request for documents, it will be necessary to consider 

the FOMB’s (i) immunity from laws that are inconsistent with PROMESA (§ 4), (ii) exemption 

from obligations and claims resulting from its actions taken to carry out PROMESA (§ 105), and 

(iii) immunity from challenges to its certification determinations, including specifically its 

certification of the Fiscal Plan (§ 106(e)), in its sole discretion (§ 201(c)(3)). The FOMB also 

has the right to assert any applicable privileges, protections, and immunities under the law, 

including but not limited to the deliberative process privilege, the attorney-client privilege, and 

the work product doctrine. These legal issues are and will be litigated before Judge Swain in the 

Title III Proceedings. If this matter is not consolidated with the matters before Judge Swain, 

there will be an inevitable duplication of judicial effort, and a risk of inconsistent results that 

would create confusion in an already complicated matter of enormous significance to the 

Commonwealth and its people. 

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17. This case is also a “related case” to the Title III Proceedings currently before 

Judge Swain under Local Rule 3A. CPI’s claims invoke the same facts and questions of law, 

including the privileges, protections, and immunities that limit access to the FOMB’s documents. 

18. Finally, CPI suffers no prejudice from reassignment to Judge Swain: the Title III 

Proceedings and related adversary proceedings are underway and subject to a rigorous case 

management schedule, which will enable CPI’s claims to be adjudicated in an efficient and 

orderly manner. 

19. For all of the foregoing reasons, the FOMB respectfully requests that the Court 

reassign this action to Judge Swain pursuant to PROMESA and Local Rule 3A. 

[Remainder of Page Intentionally Left Blank]

 

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Dated: June 13, 2017 

New York, NY

Respectfully submitted, 

/s/ Luis F. del Valle-Emmanuelli 

Luis F. del Valle-Emmanuelli 

USDC-PR No. 209514 

P.O. Box 79897 

Carolina, Puerto Rico 00984-9897 

Tel. 787.977.1932 

Fax. 787.722.1932 

dvelawoffices@gmail.com 

OF COUNSEL FOR: 

A&S LEGAL STUDIO, PSC 

434 Avenida Hostos 

San Juan, PR 00918 

Tel: (787) 751-6764/ 763-0565 

Fax: (787) 763-8260 

Attorneys for the Financial Oversight and 

Management Board for Puerto Rico 

 

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CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE 

I hereby certify that, on this same date, I electronically filed the foregoing with the Clerk 

of the Court using the CM/ECF system, which will send notifications of such filing to all 

CM/ECF participants in this case. 

/s/ Luis F. del Valle-Emmanuelli 

Luis F. del Valle-Emmanuelli 

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