Commercial Litigation and Arbitration

Party’s Motion for a Stay Pending a Decision in Another Case to Which It Is Not a Party Is a Motion for an Indefinite Stay — Standards for Indefinite Stay

Red River Coal Co. v. United States, 2012 U.S. Claims LEXIS 32 (Fed. Cl. Jan. 31, 2012):

When determining whether to issue an indefinite stay, the Court must (1) "identify a pressing need for the stay" and (2) "balance interests favoring a stay against interests frustrated by the action." Cherokee Nation of Okla., 124 F.3d at 1416.

Footnote 1. Plaintiff seems to argue that the stay it requests is for a definite period of time-until the Supreme Court resolves a possible circuit split. Accordingly, plaintiff proposes to apply the standard used when a court is assessing a motion to stay an order or judgment. Br. in Supp. of Pl.'s Mot. to Continue Stay of Proceedings 14-17. Although plaintiff requests a stay that would end upon the occurrence of certain specific events, case law indicates that the stay plaintiff requests-one pending the outcome of another case with which the plaintiff is not currently involved-is an indefinite stay. See Cherokee Nation of Okla., 124 F.3d at 1414 (vacating an "indefinite" stay that was to remain "pending the prosecution of quiet title actions in a separate forum"); CTI-Container Leasing Corp. v. Uiterwyk Corp., 685 F.2d 1284, 1288 (11th Cir. 1982) (noting that a district court's stay was for an indefinite period when it was issued pending the Iran-United States Claims Tribunal's determination as to its jurisdiction over the defendant's third-party claims); Hines v. D'Artois, 531 F.2d 726, 731-32 (5th Cir. 1976) (assessing the propriety of an "indefinite" stay that would have remained in effect for a period of time between eighteen months and five years pending the initiation and subsequent outcome of administrative proceedings); cf. In Re Sacramento Mun. Util. Dist., 395 F. App'x 684, 688 (Fed. Cir. 2010) (finding that a stay was not "indefinite" when it was issued pending a single action that the plaintiff could control because the plaintiff was directly involved). Notably, Judges Futey and Bush found that the similar stays requested by the plaintiffs in their cases are stays of indefinite duration. See Clinchfield Coal Co., 2011 WL 6369768, at *3; Consolidation Coal Co., 2011 WL 6098276, at *4. This Court sees no basis for a different finding in this case.

Share this article:

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Email

Recent Posts

(1) Appellate Review of Inherent Power Sanctions (7th Circuit): Factual Findings Reviewed for Clear Error, Choice of Sanction for Abuse of Discretion — 4-Element Test for Reversal; (2) Sanctions and Class Actions: Monetary Sanctions Properly Imposed on Defendants for Improper Communications with Class Members (Represented Parties) — “[I]f The Class And The Class Opponent Are Involved In An Ongoing Business Relationship, Communications From The Class Opponent To The Class May Be Coercive” (Good Quote); (3) Monetary Sanctions under Goodyear v. Haeger: If Same Fact-Gathering Would Have Been Conducted Absent The Misconduct, No But-For Causation — But Only “Rough Justice” Required, “Not Accountant-Like Precision” (Good Quote) — Once Misconduct Is Clear, Time Spent Ferreting It Out Compensable under Goodyear; (4) Goodyear Did Not Overrule Long-Standing Rule That Courts May Impose Modest Civil Monetary Sanctions to Curb Litigation Abuse; (5) Appellate Jurisdiction Lacking Where Sanctioned Attorney Fails to File Notice of Appeal and Lawyer’s Intent to Appeal Not Apparent from Client’s Notice; (5) Rule 11 Improper Purpose — Party May Have Many Purposes for Pursuing Claim — As Long As Claim Is Supported by Good Faith Belief in the Merits, “A Parallel Reason Does Not Violate Rule 11” — To Deny A Motion for Sanctions, The District Court Need Not Address Every Argument: “Arguments Clearly Without Merit Can, And For The Sake Of Judicial Economy Should, Be Passed Over In Silence” (Good Quote); Non-Monetary Sanction on Counsel: Complete Twice The Required Amount Of Professional Responsibility Hours For Her Next Continuing Legal Education Cycle Imposed By The State Bar

Archives