Court Opinion

ID: 9954336
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2024-03-25 21:11:43.400715+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T08:12:02.399922
License: Public Domain

Bissell St. I, LLC v Westbrook Partners LLC
               2024 NY Slip Op 30884(U)
                      March 18, 2024
           Supreme Court, New York County
        Docket Number: Index No. 654223/2022
                   Judge: Joel M. Cohen
Cases posted with a "30000" identifier, i.e., 2013 NY Slip
 Op 30001(U), are republished from various New York
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  York State Unified Court System's eCourts Service.
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                       publication.
                                                                                                  INDEX NO. 654223/2022
  NYSCEF DOC. NO. 107                                                                     RECEIVED NYSCEF: 03/18/2024

           SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK
           COUNTY OF NEW YORK: COMMERCIAL DIVISION PART 03M

           -------------------X
            BISSELL STREET I, LLC, BISSELL BELLEVUE                         INDEX NO.            654223/2022
            MEMBER, LLC,
                                                                                                 02/23/2024,
                                              Plaintiffs,                                        02/23/2024,
                                                                                                 02/23/2024,
                                      - V -                                 MOTION DATE          02/23/2024
            WESTBROOK PARTNERS LLC, EGBW38R OWNER,
                                                                                                 006 007 008
            LLC, EGBW38R HOLDINGS, LLC, EGBW38R REIT, LLC
                                                                            MOTION SEQ. NO.         009
                                              Defendants.
                                                                              DECISION+ ORDER ON
                                                                                    MOTION
           -------------------X
           HON. JOEL M. COHEN:

           The following e-filed documents, listed by NYSCEF document number (Motion 006) 76, 77, 78, 79, 92,
           93,94
           were read on this motion for                          SUBPOENADUCESTECUM

           The following e-filed documents, listed by NYSCEF document number (Motion 007) 80, 81, 82, 83, 95,
           96, 97
           were read on this motion for                          SUBPOENADUCESTECUM

           The following e-filed documents, listed by NYSCEF document number (Motion 008) 84, 85, 86, 87, 98,
           99,100
           were read on this motion for                          SUBPOENA DUCES TECUM

           The following e-filed documents, listed by NYSCEF document number (Motion 009) 88, 89, 90, 91, 101,
           102,103
           were read on this motion for                          SUBPOENA DUCES TECUM

                  Plaintiffs Bissell Street I, LLC and Bissell Bellevue Member, LLC (together "Plaintiffs"

           or "Bissell") move for an order issuing subpoenas duces tecum (NYSCEF 76, 80, 84, 88 [the

           "Subpoenas"]) directed to four non-party entities (the "Non-Parties") pursuant to CPLR 2307:

           Teachers' Retirement System of the City ofNew York (Mot. Seq. 006), New York City Fire

            654223/2022 BISSELL STREET I, LLC ET AL vs. WESTBROOK PARTNERS LLC ET AL              Page 1 of4
            Motion No. 006 007 008 009

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                                                                                                  INDEX NO. 654223/2022
  NYSCEF DOC. NO. 107                                                                      RECEIVED NYSCEF: 03/18/2024

           Pension Fund (Mot. Seq. 007), New York City Police Pension Fund (Mot. Seq. 008), and New

           York State Common Retirement Fund (Mot. Seq. 009).

                  The Subpoenas seek all communications and financial records between the Non-Parties

           and Westbrook Partners Real Estate Fund XI, and/or any Defendant, "referring to, referencing,

           or related to the Boeing campus." The Subpoenas further provide that "[r]esponsive documents

           shall include, but not be limited to, communications, reports, prospectus materials, acquisition

           analyses, financial projections, quarterly reports, annual reports, distribution statements, capital

           call and distribution notices and co-investment materials exchanged between or among

           Westbrook Partners Real Estate Fund XI or any Westbrook Defendant, on the one hand," and the

           Non-parties, on the other. Defendants oppose these motions. For the following reasons,

           Plaintiffs' motion is denied.

                  CPLR 2307 governs a subpoena seeking "books, papers and other things" from a

           "library, or a department or bureau of a municipal corporation or of the state, or an officer

           thereof." CPLR 2307 provides that "[u]nless the court orders otherwise, a motion for such

           subpoena shall be made on at least one day's notice to the library, department, bureau or officer

           having custody of the book, document or other thing and the adverse party ... " (CPLR 2307[a];

           Sanderson v NY City Tr. Auth., 2001 NY Slip Op 5 l 382[U], *2 [Sup Ct, Kings County 2007]).

           The statute is reinforced by CPLR 3120(4), which notes that the motion requirements in CPLR

           2307 are applicable when a subpoena duces tecum is sought to be served on a library or certain

           governmental departments in pretrial disclosure (CPLR 3120(4); 63rd & 3rd NYC LLC v Starr

           Indem. & Liab. Co., 76 Misc 3d 1208[A], [Sup Ct, NY County 2022])).

                  Here, nothing in the record indicates that Plaintiffs provided the notice required by CPLR

           2307 to the Non-Parties. Thus, Plaintiffs have not given the Non-Parties an opportunity to

            654223/2022 BISSELL STREET I, LLC ET AL vs. WESTBROOK PARTNERS LLC ET AL               Page 2of4
            Motion No. 006 007 008 009

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                                                                                                    INDEX NO. 654223/2022
  NYSCEF DOC. NO. 107                                                                     RECEIVED NYSCEF: 03/18/2024

           oppose these motions. Accordingly, the motions must be denied (People v Simone, 92 Misc 2d

           306,310 [Sup Ct, Bronx County 1977] [noting that the notice requirement serves the interest of

           allowing the government to "object to the issuance of a subpoena on legitimate grounds before it

           is signed"], aff71 AD2d 554 [1st Dept 1979]; 63rd & 3rd NYC LLC, 76 Misc 3d 1208[A]

           [denying motion pursuant to CPLR 2307 because defendant "failed to attach an affidavit or

           document evidencing that the within application was made on notice to the City of New York"];

           Townsend v B-U Realty Corp., 67 Misc 3d 1228[A] [Sup Ct, NY County 2020] [denying motion

           pursuant to CPLR 2307 as ''the court has not dispensed with the procedural requirement that

           plaintiff give at least one day's notice to DHCR of its application for a subpoena"]).

                     Moreover, ifthere are documents exchanged among Defendants and Westbrook Partners

           Real Estate Fund XI and the Non-Parties, those documents would be in Defendants' and/or and

           Westbrook Partners Real Estate Fund XI's possession. 1 Plaintiffs should first request those

           documents from Defendants. If there is reason thereafter to request such documents from the

           Non-Parties, Plaintiffs may do so, provided they comply with the requirements of CPLR 2307.

                     Accordingly, it is

                     ORDERED that Plaintiffs' Motions are DENIED without prejudice.

           1
            Indeed, during a January 23, 2024 conference with the Court's law clerk, Plaintiffs were
           advised to refine and narrow their earlier document requests to Defendants which seek to capture
           the same documents Plaintiffs seek from the Non-Parties through the Subpoenas.

               654223/2022 BISSELL STREET I, LLC ET AL vs. WESTBROOK PARTNERS LLC ET AL             Page 3of4
               Motion No. 006 007 008 009

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                                                                                                  INDEX NO. 654223/2022
  NYSCEF DOC. NO. 107                                                                       RECEIVED NYSCEF: 03/18/2024

                   This constitutes the Decision and Order of the Court.

                   3/18/2024
                     DATE                                                       JOEL M. COHEN, J.S.C.

                                    ~
            CHECK ONE:                  CASE DISPOSED                   NON-FINAL DISPOSITION
                                        GRANTED         0    DENIED     GRANTED IN PART         □ OTHER
            APPLICATION:                SETTLE ORDER                    SUBMIT ORDER
            CHECK IF APPROPRIATE:       INCLUDES TRANSFER/REASSIGN      FIDUCIARY APPOINTMENT   □ REFERENCE

            654223/2022 BISSELL STREET I, LLC ET AL vs. WESTBROOK PARTNERS LLC ET AL              Page4of4
            Motion No. 006 007 008 009

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