Thomas Harvey, individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated v. WK Kellogg Co. and Walmart Inc.

Summary

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York granted Defendants’ motion to stay discovery in a consumer class action concerning allegedly inaccurate serving-size and servings-per-container information on Froot Loops with Marshmallows cereal labels. The court concluded that Defendants had shown that most claims were likely subject to dismissal, discovery would be burdensome, and Plaintiff would suffer little prejudice from a limited stay pending resolution of the anticipated motion to dismiss.

Holdings

1. A court may stay discovery under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c) when good cause is shown; the mere filing or pendency of a dispositive motion does not automatically stay discovery.
2. Defendants' motion to stay discovery was granted in its entirety.

Questions Presented

1. Whether discovery should be stayed under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c) pending resolution of Defendants' anticipated motion to dismiss.
2. Whether the anticipated motion to dismiss made a sufficiently strong showing of likely merit to support a stay.
3. Whether the breadth and burden of anticipated discovery and the absence of meaningful prejudice favored staying discovery.

Disposition

other