An ongoing criminal investigation of an insurance broker is not sufficient reason to stay a pending civil suit against it, a state judge has ruled, ordering the brokerage to comply with discovery requests in the civil matter.
“While courts have recognized the difficulty that defendants face in presenting evidence on their own behalf and asserting their Fifth Amendment rights, a court need not permit a defendant to avoid this difficulty by staying a civil action until a pending criminal prosecution has been terminated,” Supreme Court Justice Timothy S. Driscoll of Nassau County ruled in Budget Installment Corp. v. LaMere Associates, 16105-08.
