United States Second Circuit

In suits by workers claiming injuries at the ground zero site of the World Trade Center disaster and related sites, motion to vacate the stay of District Court proceedings in connection with an interlocutory appeal from denial of motions for judgment on the pleadings and summary judgment is granted as the public interest favors permitting pretrial proceedings to resume, thereby hastening the trial that might result in compensation for at least some Plaintiffs during their lifetimes, even though that course will impose upon the defendants' the burdens of pretrial discovery, thereby denying them immunity from suit during the interval from now until such time as it might ultimately be determined that their claims for immunity from suit are valid.

Appellate Information

• Decided 10/05/2007
• Published 10/05/2007

Judges

• WESLEY, Circuit Judge:, Before:  NEWMAN, SOTOMAYOR, and WESLEY, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Second Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellees:
  
• James E. Tyrrell, Jr., Newark, NJ (Joseph E. Hopkins, James O. Copley, Jason W. Rockwell, Justin S. Strochlic, Jonathan M. Peck, Patton Boggs LLP, on the brief), for Defendants-Appellants The City of New York and its Contractors., Richard A. Williamson, New York, N.Y. (M. Bradford Stein, Thomas A. Egan, Flemming Zulack Williamson Zauderer LLP, New York, NY, on the brief), for Defendant-Appellant The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey., Kevin K. Russell, Washington, DC (Amy Howe, Howe & Russell, P.C., Washington, DC;  Paul J. Napoli, William H. Groner, Denise A. Rubin, William J. Dubanevich, Christopher R. LoPalo, W. Steven Berman, Worby Groner Edelman & Napoli Bern, LLP, East Meadow, NY, on the brief), for Plaintiffs-Appellees., Brian J. Shoot, New York, N.Y. (Frank V. Floriani, Andrew J. Carboy, Susan M. Jaffe, Wendell Y. Tong, Sullivan Papain Block McGrath & Cannavo, P.C., New York, NY, on the brief), for Plaintiffs-Appellees., Marion S. Mishkin, Law Office of Marion S. Mishkin, New York, NY, for Plaintiffs-Appellees John Montalvo and Darlene Montalvo, on behalf of the Non-Respiratory Injured Plaintiffs-Appellees., Peter G. Verniero, Philip S. White, James M. Hirschhorn, David W. Kiefer, Sills Cummis Epstein & Gross, PC, New York, NY, for amici curiae Construction Industry, AIA New York State, Inc., et al., in support of Defendants-Appellants., John C. Gillespie, Parker McCay P.A., Marlton, NJ, for amicus curiae International Municipal Lawyers Association, in support of Defendants-Appellants., Eric F. Leon, Lee Ann Stevenson, Andrew R. Dunlap, Kirkland & Ellis LLP, New York, NY, Patrick F. Philbin, Kirkland & Ellis LLP, Washington, DC, for amicus curiae Verizon New York Inc., in support of Defendants-Appellants., Cheryl A. Harris, Harris & Miranda, LLP, New York, NY, for amicus curiae Certain Members of the United States Congress, in support of Plaintiffs-Appellees., Edward J. Groarke, Stephanie Suarez, Michael D. Bosso, Colleran, O'Hara & Mills, LLP, Garden City, NY, for amici curiae New York State AFL-CIO and Building and Construction Trades Council of Greater New York, in support of Plaintiffs-Appellees., Larry Cary, Cary Kane LLP, New York, NY, for amicus curiae New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health, in support of Plaintiffs-Appellees.