Rimini v. J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.

USONUITTEHDE RSTNA DTIESST RDIICSTT ROIFC TN ECWOU YROTR K ---------------------------------------------------------------------- X : THOMAS RIMINI, : : Plaintiff, : : 22 Civ. 7768 (JPC) -v- : : OPINION AND ORDER J.P. MORGAN CHASE & CO. et al., : : Defendants. : : ---------------------------------------------------------------------- X JOHN P. CRONAN, United States District Judge: Thomas Rimini commenced this suit on September 9, 2022. Dkt. 1 (“Initial Complaint”).

The Initial Complaint alleges a claim under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (“Sarbanes-Oxley”) and seeks “to move 2022-SOX-00018 that has been proceeding before the Department of Labor to this Court.” Id. at 5. As the Court has explained, Sarbanes-Oxley’s jurisdictional kick-out provision, 18 U.S.C. § 1514A(b)(1)(B), allows a plaintiff to bring an action for de novo review in federal district court only after 180 days has elapsed without a final decision on the plaintiff’s administrative complaint by the Secretary of Labor. Rimini v. J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., No. 21 Civ. 7209 (JPC), 2022 WL 4585651, at *4 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 29, 2022). “If, on the other hand, the Secretary does issue a timely final decision within the 180 days, the plaintiff’s only recourse is to seek judicial review ‘within 60 days in the United States Court of Appeals for the circuit in which the violation allegedly occurred or the circuit in which the complainant resided on the date of the violation.’” Id. (quoting Daly v. Citigroup Inc., 939 F.3d 415, 427 (2d Cir. 2019)).

Here, the public docket for the relevant administrative complaint indicates that a “Notice of Docketing” was filed on April 26, 2022, and that the “case was docketed” on March 18, 2022. Case Status Lookup, Dep’t of Lab., https://www.oalj.dol.gov/DMSSEARCH2/caseStatus2.jsp (search “2022-SOX-00018”’) (last visited Sept. 13, 2024). The docket further indicates that on September 8, 2022, Judge Calianos entered an order dismissing Rimini’s complaint with prejudice and “setting [a] deadline for removal to United States District Court.” /d. (capitalization altered). Then, as noted above, Rimini filed the instant suit on September 9, 2022. Dkt. 1.

Accordingly, it appearing that Rimini filed the instant action less than 180 days after he filed his complaint with the Secretary of Labor and only after a final decision on that complaint was entered, the Court hereby orders that by September 20, 2024, the parties shall each file simultaneous letter briefs with the Court setting forth their respective positions as to whether Rimini’s Sarbanes- Oxley claim satisfies the kick-out provision’s jurisdictional requirements. The parties shall also address whether the statute’s jurisdictional exhaustion requirement has been satisfied as to the post- September 2022 acts of alleged retaliation pleaded in Rimini’s Amended Complaint. Dkt. 49.

SO ORDERED. Vila Dated: September 13, 2024 hol New York, New York JOHN P. CRONAN United States District Judge