Opinion
Case No. 17 C 1886
04-11-2017
R.F. TECHNOLOGIES, INC., an Illinois Corporation, et al., Plaintiffs, v. LeCLAIR RYAN, P.C., a Virginia Professional Corporation, et al., Defendants.
MEMORANDUM ORDER
At the April 7 status hearing in this action, this Court made several oral rulings that were memorialized in this minute entry (Dkt. No. 16):
MINUTE entry before the Honorable Milton I. Shadur: Status hearing held on 4/7/2017. As indicated in open court, the Court strikes plaintiffs' amended complaint. The plaintiffs' are directed to file a proper amendment to the complaint by 4/21/2017. The court directs defendants Thomas O'Leary and LeClair Ryan to deliver to chambers by 4/28/2017, a hard copy of their motion to dismiss that was filed in state court. Status hearing set for 5/1/2017 at 9:00 a.m. Mailed notice (wp, )Instead of waiting until the latter part of this month to deliver to this Court's chambers the motion to dismiss this action that had been filed in the Circuit Court of Cook County before the case was removed to this District Court, counsel for co-defendants Thomas O'Leary and LeClair Ryan, PC swiftly provided the requested (and unexpectedly bulky) motion on the very next working day, April 10.
That motion has painted an appalling picture of the conduct of the present co-plaintiffs, R.F. Technologies, Inc. and its shareholder and chief executive officer Bob Noorian, in the underlying action in which they were represented by the lawyers whom they are now suing on malpractice charges in this case. This Court sees no reason to wait for the May 1 status hearing date that was set by the April 7 minute entry, for plaintiffs and their counsel have a good deal of explaining to do to support the maintenance of this action under the standards of subjective and objective good faith demanded by Fed. R. Civ. P. 11(b), which are applicable now that their lawsuit has come to a federal forum. Accordingly a status hearing is set to be held at 8:45 a.m. April 18, 2017.
/s/_________
Milton I. Shadur
Senior United States District Judge Date: April 11, 2017