On March 23, U.S. District Court Judge James Robart for the Western District of Washington at Seattle granted Zillow’s motion to stay discovery and case deadlines in the class action Taylor v. Zillow, which was previously consolidated with a similar class action.

On Feb. 20, Zillow filed its motion to stay discovery, arguing that a stay “is warranted because this sprawling action (encompassing 11 plaintiffs bringing seven claims against eight defendants) is likely to be dismissed entirely or, at a minimum, substantially narrowed (including the dismissal of parties and claims).”

The plaintiffs argued that Zillow’s claim that the pending motions to dismiss may dispose of the case is “speculative” and that a stay risks prejudicing plaintiffs by “delaying relief”
and limiting access to potential evidence.

The court found that a stay is warranted for several reasons.

A “preliminary peek” at the merits of Zillow’s motions “is enough to convince the court that a favorable ruling would dispose of the entire case.” The court also found that the pending motions to dismiss “will be necessarily decided without additional discovery, as the court is required to accept the complaint as true.”

The court further found that the risk of harm to any party is minimal as the case has only been pending for a few months and a stay is likely to be brief. In addition, the real estate defendants previously contested the court’s jurisdiction over them and a stay would aid efficiency and judicial economy through knowing which parties and claims are at issue before undertaking extensive discovery.

The court noted that a stay would avoid potentially significant hardship and inequity as proceeding with discovery may result in defendants incurring costs related to claims or parties that are eventually dismissed.

Lastly, the court agreed with the defendants that a stay is likely to simplify the case. The plaintiffs’ consolidated amended complaint contains 20 different parties across seven different causes of action. The court stated, “Even if the court only grants defendants’ motions to dismiss in part, the result will be to simplify the issues and parties moving forward.”

Thus, the court granted Zillow’s motion to stay discovery and its deadlines to respond to any discovery requests served prior to the entry of the present order. The stay will be lifted if the court enters an order that denies the motions to dismiss in whole or in part.