NYLJ Eastern District Roundup
Posted: April 15, 2022 / Written by: Harvey M. Stone, Richard H. Dolan / Categories Juries, Taxation, Jurisdiction
Vaccinated Jury, Counsel Conflict, Lack of Subject Matter Jurisdiction
This column reports on several significant representative decisions handed down recently in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. Judge William F. Kuntz, II, denied defendants' motions for a new trial based on the court's decision to seat only jurors who had been vaccinated against COVID-19. Judge Ann M. Donnelly affirmed an order by Magistrate Judge James M. Wicks disqualifying a law firm from representing defendants Nassau County and individual law enforcement officers while the firm was also representing a prospective trial witness whose interests were different from those of the other clients. And Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis, dismissing an action seeking the refund of a federal tax penalty, found that plaintiff's failure to file with the IRS a proper and timely Claim for Refund and Request for Abasement deprived the court of subject matter jurisdiction.