Opinion ID: 696250
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The Adjournment of the Federal Trial

Text: 13 The district court found that Vann and Jacquard obtained an adjournment of the New York action on the basis of a commitment that they would return and complete that action. Opinion of Oct. 23, 1992, at 26, 153 F.R.D. at 53. According to the district judge, Vann and Jacquard decided to violate this commitment either at the time they made it or soon thereafter. It is unclear, however, what the district court meant when it referred to Vann's commitment. Vann did tell the court that his main witness, Diamantis, would return to New York to complete his testimony on another date if they were unable to finish on Friday, February 17, 1989. But Vann did not violate this commitment because the New York trial was eventually completed--albeit only after Vann and Jacquard were unsuccessful in having the favorable Alabama judgment enforced. And to the extent the district court was referring to a commitment not to proceed in another forum, such a commitment was never made, at least not to the court. 7 14 On the other hand, Vann did fail to inform the district court of the impending Alabama trial date, even though on February 17, 1989--when the federal trial was temporarily adjourned--it was clear that the federal trial would not be completed before the date set for the beginning of the Alabama action. Vann maintains that his associate had mentioned the Alabama action to the district judge at the first conference in the case and had sought permission to file a motion for a stay of the federal action. Counsel for Milltex recalls that Vann's associate mentioned a related case in Alabama at the first conference, but he claims that the associate never discussed a possible stay of the federal action. 8 According to the district judge, he first became aware of the Alabama action only when Milltex applied for the TRO on February 21, 1989. Opinion of Oct. 23, 1992, at 15, 153 F.R.D. at 46. 15 The record before us does not indicate whether Jacquard did in fact take steps to stay the federal action. The record is deficient, according to Vann, because under the district judge's individual rules on motions practice, Vann was required to seek a pre-motion conference in order to obtain permission to file a motion to postpone the New York trial. Appellant's Br. at 13 n. 11. While Vann had ways to ensure that his purported request became a matter of record (e.g., by writing a letter to the court memorializing his request), he should not have been prevented from filing the motion, if in fact he was. As we have recognized before, [a]bsent extraordinary circumstances, such as a demonstrated history of frivolous and vexatious litigation ... or a failure to comply with sanctions imposed for such conduct ... a court has no power to prevent a party from filing pleadings, motions or appeals authorized by the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Richardson Greenshields Securities, Inc. v. Lau, 825 F.2d 647, 652 (2d Cir.1987). Although it is within the judge's discretion to hold a pre-motion conference for the purpose of persuading a party not to file a perceived meritless motion, 9 see id. (We do not suggest that district judges cannot require a conference prior to the filing of motions as a means of managing litigation assigned to them.), the judge may not require that the court's permission be secured at such a conference before a party may file the motion. 10 16 Whether or not Vann moved for a stay in the district court is not crucial, however, to resolving the question before us. Even if he did not, his conduct with respect to the adjournment of the federal action does not sink to the level of bad faith. To be sure, Vann should have told the district court about the impending Alabama trial date before it adjourned the trial on February 17, 1989. 11 Yet counsel for Milltex also neglected to mention it to the court, and, as we stated on another occasion in this very litigation, [i]t is difficult to assess blame when both parties knowingly kept the district court uninformed. Milltex Indus. Corp. v. Jacquard Lace Co., 922 F.2d 164, 167 n. 4 (2d Cir.1991). 17 The district court found that only Vann had acted in bad faith, however, because Milltex's counsel was at all times ready to carry the New York case to judgment. Opinion of Oct. 23, 1992, at 9, 153 F.R.D. at 47. This argument raises two problems. First, Vann cannot be held responsible for his client's decision to pursue the Alabama action because the decision was made largely by Jacquard and its Alabama counsel, William Sanderson. More important, the decision to go forward in Alabama was neither entirely without color nor motivated by improper purposes. To the contrary, current law under the Anti-Injunction Act, 28 U.S.C. Sec. 2283, does not permit a federal court to interfere with a party's simultaneous pursuit of an action in state court. See Atlantic Coast Line R.R. v. Brotherhood of Locomotive Engrs., 398 U.S. 281, 295-96, 90 S.Ct. 1739, 1747, 26 L.Ed.2d 234 (1970) ([T]he state and federal courts had concurrent jurisdiction in this case, and neither court was free to prevent either party from simultaneously pursuing claims in both courts.). And the district judge stopped short of finding that Jacquard's reason for seeking to adjourn early on Friday--to permit Diamantis to return to Alabama for the holiday weekend--was a false pretext at the time the adjournment was discussed. Opinion of Oct. 23, 1992, at 26, 153 F.R.D. at 48. 18 Without a finding that Vann deliberately misled the court at the time his client sought an early adjournment, we cannot conclude that Vann acted in bad faith. After the district court adjourned the trial, there is not much Vann could have done to change the course of events that then unfolded. It was Jacquard's Alabama counsel who made the decision to take advantage of the February 21, 1989 Alabama calendar call and urged the Alabama court to decide Jacquard's summary judgment motion. And though Vann deserves some criticism for failing to inform the district judge about the imminent Alabama trial date, so too does counsel for Milltex. Vann's failure in this regard, standing alone, does not justify a finding of bad faith.