Commercial Litigation and Arbitration

Standards for Certifying Interlocutory Appeal under § 1292(b) — Implications of Need to Study Record or Assess Sufficiency of Pleadings

From Santiago v. Pinello, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3179 (E.D.N.Y. Jan. 16, 2009):

A district court may certify an interlocutory appeal under three conditions: (1) where the order appealed from "involves a controlling question of law" (2) "as to which there is substantial ground for difference of opinion" and (3) where "an immediate appeal from the order may materially advance the ultimate termination of the litigation[.]" 28 U.S.C. § 1292(b).

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The first prong of § 1292(b) requires that the question presented on appeal be a "pure question of law that the reviewing court could decide quickly and cleanly without having to study the record." ... The question presented on appeal must also be "controlling." § 1292(b). A question is controlling when "reversal of the district court's order would terminate the action" ..., or, "at a minimum," where "determination of the issue on appeal would materially affect the litigation's outcome."

*** The second prong of § 1292(b), that there be "substantial ground for difference of opinion" on the issue, requires a "genuine doubt as to whether the district court applied the correct legal standard in its order." .... This may mean that there is "conflicting authority on the issue" or that "the issue is particularly difficult and is one of first impression for the Second Circuit."... Generally, "rulings on the sufficiency of pleadings are not appropriate for interlocutory review." ...

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The third prong of § 1292(b) requires that "immediate appeal from the order may materially advance the ultimate termination of the litigation[.]" Care in certifying an interlocutory appeal is especially important in cases where it is not clear that the appellate court's "disposition of [the] issues will materially advance the ultimate determination of [the] case." ... Thus, §1292(b) "is reserved for those cases where an intermediate appeal may avoid protracted litigation." ... Courts "place particular emphasis on the importance on [the] last factor" of § 1292(b)....

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