Preview
FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022
1
DEPONENTCORRECTEDTRANSCRIPT
SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK
COUNTY OF NEW YORK: PART 7
--------------------------------------x
NORMA KNOPF and MICHAEL KNOPF,
Plaintiffs,
-against-
FRANK M. ESPOSITO, DORSEY & WHITNEY,
LLP, NATHANIEL H. AKERMAN and
EDWARD S. FELDMAN,
De fendants.
Case No: 150315/2019
--------------------------------------x
EDWARD S. FELDMAN,
Third-Party Plaintiff,
- against -
ERIC W. BERRY,
Third-Party Defendant.
---------------------------------------x
March 11, 2022
10:39 a.m.
Telephonic Deposition of
Non-party Witness, MICHAEL HAYDEN SANFORD,
before CINDY A. AFANADOR, Certified Shorthand
Reporter, Registered Professional Reporter,
Certified Realtime Reporter, Registered Merit
Reporter, NYSRCR, NYSACR and Notary Public of
the State of New York.
CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC.
516-491-2694
www.cindycourtreporting.com
CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC.
1-877-DEPO-YOU
1 of 281
FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022
2
DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT
A P P E A R A N C E S:
BERRY LAW PLLC
Attorneys for Plaintiffs
745 Fifth Avenue, 5th Floor
New York, New York 10151
BY: ERIC BERRY, ESQ.
berrylawpllc@gmailcom
(212) 355-0777
(via videoconference)
MICHAEL HAYDEN SANFORD
PRO SE
23 McKinley Drive 11:39:20
Montauk, New York 11954 11:39:22
(via telephone)
MORVILLO ABRAMOWITZ GRAND IASON & ANELLO, P.C.
Attorneys for
565 Fifth Avenue
New York, New York 10017
BY: EDWARD M. SPIRO, ESQ.
espiro@maglaw.com
(Via videoconference)
CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC.
1-877-DEPO-YOU
2 of 281
FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022
3
DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT
1
2 PAYKIN KRIEG & ADAMS, LLP
3 Attorneys for Third-Party Defendant Eric Berry
4 2500 Westchester Avenue, Suite 1071
5 Purchase, New York 10577
6 BY: DAVID A. SCHRADER, ESQ.
7 dschrader@pkalaw.com
8 (212) 725-4423
9 (Via videoconference)
10
11
12
13 ALSO PRESENT:
14 Nathaniel H. Akerman
15 Frank M. Esposito
16 Edward S. Feldman
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC.
1-877-DEPO-YOU
3 of 281
FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022
4
DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT
1
2 IT IS HEREBY STIPULATED AND
3 AGREED by and between the attorneys
4 for the respective parties herein,
5 that the filing, sealing and
6 certification of the within deposition
7 be waived.
8 IT IS FURTHER STIPULATED AND
9 AGREED that all objections, except
10 as to the form of the question,
11 shall be reserved to the time of the
12 trial.
13 IT IS FURTHER STIPULATED AND
14 AGREED that the within deposition
15 may be sworn to and signed before
16 any officer authorized to administer
17 an oath with the same force and
18 effect as if signed and sworn to
19 before the Court.
20
21
22 - oOo -
23
24
25
CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC.
1-877-DEPO-YOU
4 of 281
FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022
5
DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT
1 Michael Hayden Sanford
2 09:54:37
3 MR. BERRY: Mr. Sanford, can you 10:36:01
4 just recite that you understand that you 10:36:03
5 are testifying under penalty of perjury. 10:36:06
6 THE WITNESS: Yes. I understand 10:36:09
7 that my testimony today is under penalty 10:36:09
8 of perjury. 10:36:11
9 The Court REPORTER: Okay, and
10 Mr. Sanford, I'm just going to need you
11 to speak louder for me or closer to your
12 device, please. You are a little low
13 and I don't want to have an issue with
14 the audio.
15 MR. SANFORD: You know, I am
16 speaking very loud and I am right next
17 to my phone, so I don't think it's me,
18 but I will try.
19 The Court REPORTER: Well, I can
20 hear everybody and you are a little
21 muffled for me, so if you could keep
22 that in mind, please. 10:36:59
23 MR. SCHRADER: Why is the witness 10:36:59
24 not on video?
25 MR. SANFORD: Because this
CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC.
1-877-DEPO-YOU
5 of 281
FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022
6
DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT
1 Michael Hayden Sanford
2 deposition was already agreed not to be
3 on video. That's what the stipulation
4 is and that's how we are going to do
5 this deposition.
6 (Crosstalk.) 10:37:14
7 MR. SCHRADER: This is David 10:37:14
8 Schrader. For the record, I didn't 10:37:16
9 stipulate to that. 10:37:17
10 MR. BERRY: I'm going to call you 10:37:18
11 right now. 10:37:19
12 MR. SCHRADER: I think it's 10:37:20
13 highly irregular. 10:37:21
14 MR. ESPOSITO: Miss Reporter, 10:37:25
15 This is Frank Esposito. I'd like to 10:37:26
16 note for the record that I have a hard 10:37:27
17 stop at 3:00 p.m. 10:37:29
18 Thank you. 10:37:33
19 The Court REPORTER: Thank you. 10:37:33
20 (Recess taken.) 10:39:10
21 MR. BERRY: I would like the -- I 10:39:10
22 would like the deposition to start. 10:39:18
23 The Court REPORTER: Are we on
24 the record? Are we on the record?
25 MR. BERRY: We are on the record.
CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC.
1-877-DEPO-YOU
6 of 281
FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022
7
DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT
1 Michael Hayden Sanford
2 The Court REPORTER: Okay.
3 EXAMINATION BY
4 MR. BERRY: 10:39:26
5 Q. Mr. Sanford, how are you today? 10:39:26
6 A. I'm very well, Mr. Berry, how are 10:39:31
7 you? 10:39:35
8 Q. All right. Okay. So -- 10:39:35
9 A. I just want to have one thing, 10:39:37
10 normal stipulations, the only thing I would 10:39:41
11 like to stipulate to is the transcript itself. 10:39:43
12 I would like to stipulate that today's 10:39:48
13 transcript will not be distributed to anyone 10:39:51
14 other than Deponent Sanford until he has 10:39:54
15 reasonable time to review it and provide any 10:39:59
16 errata corrections, and I'm proposing just two 10:40:02
17 weeks, if we can agree that the transcript is 10:40:07
18 not otherwise distributed. 10:40:09
19 MR. BERRY: That's fine with the 10:40:12
20 plaintiffs and that's fine for the 10:40:14
21 third-party defendant. 10:40:16
22 THE WITNESS: Okay. Is that fine 10:40:18
23 with everyone else? Obviously, 10:40:19
24 Mr. Berry is producing the transcript, 10:40:22
25 so that's fine, correct? 10:40:23
CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC.
1-877-DEPO-YOU
7 of 281
FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022
8
DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT
1 Michael Hayden Sanford
2 MR. SCHRADER: I'm not 10:40:25
3 understanding that the transcript will 10:40:26
4 be distributed to whom? 10:40:29
5 THE WITNESS: To anyone other 10:40:30
6 than myself for two weeks upon when it's 10:40:31
7 completed it will be given to me so that 10:40:36
8 I can make any errata corrections and 10:40:39
9 only after that time frame will it be 10:40:41
10 distributed to anyone else. 10:40:44
11 MR. SCHRADER: No, I don't agree 10:40:46
12 to that. That's ridiculous. We can all 10:40:47
13 get the transcript when the transcript 10:40:51
14 is made so we can all review it while 10:40:53
15 our memory is still fresh, rather 10:40:55
16 than -- 10:40:57
17 MR. SANFORD: Okay. 10:40:59
18 (Crosstalk.) 10:41:00
19 MR. SANFORD: Everyone on the 10:41:01
20 call can review it, but it won't be 10:41:02
21 filed anywhere or given to anyone else 10:41:05
22 who's not a participant today. 10:41:07
23 MR. SCHRADER: That's acceptable. 10:41:10
24 MR. SANFORD: Is that okay? 10:41:12
25 Thank you. 10:41:12
CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC.
1-877-DEPO-YOU
8 of 281
FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022
9
DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT
1 Michael Hayden Sanford
2 MR. SPIRO: I should be free to 10:41:14
3 share it with my client as well. 10:41:16
4 MR. SANFORD: That's what we 10:41:18
5 mean, people on the call today and their 10:41:20
6 clients. 10:41:21
7 MR. SPIRO: Okay. 10:41:22
8 The Court REPORTER: And I just 10:41:52
9 want to state, Mr. Sanford, if I ask you 10:41:52
10 to repeat something, it's because I did 10:41:53
11 not hear you so just repeat exactly what 10:41:56
12 you said. 10:41:57
13 MR. SANFORD: No problem. 10:42:00
14 The Court REPORTER: And just 10:42:01
15 please try to speak any your phone you 10:42:02
16 are a little muffled for me. 10:42:04
17 MR. SANFORD: I'm not sure what 10:42:07
18 to do. I'm doing the best. I'm three 10:42:08
19 inches from my phone, but okay. 10:42:09
20 BY MR. BERRY: 10:42:41
21 Q. Is the witness ready to start 10:42:41
22 answering questions? 10:42:43
23 A. Yes. 10:42:44
24 MR. BERRY: Okay. Note the time, 10:42:45
25 it's 10:42. 10:42:47
CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC.
1-877-DEPO-YOU
9 of 281
FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022
10
DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT
1 Michael Hayden Sanford
2 BY MR. BERRY: 10:42:50
3 Q. Okay, Mr. Sanford, I already 10:42:50
4 asked you how you were today so let's go to 10:42:52
5 some other questions. 10:42:54
6 A. Eric, are you speaking? I don't 10:43:14
7 hear anything. 10:43:16
8 Q. I'm taking my time. 10:43:16
9 A. Okay. 10:43:17
10 Q. And I just have to close out some 10:43:18
11 screens, okay. 10:43:24
12 Mr. Sanford, can you see what I'm 10:43:25
13 screen sharing, which is Exhibit 303? 10:44:19
14 A. Yes. I think you need to make 10:44:26
15 it, yes, smaller, because it's -- hold on one 10:44:30
16 second. Can you give me full page view so I 10:44:32
17 see the whole page? 10:44:38
18 Q. I'm doing the best I can. Can 10:44:39
19 you read it now? 10:44:41
20 A. Well, I can read -- can you just 10:44:41
21 make it small -- not make it larger, but just 10:44:47
22 hit single page view so the whole page -- 10:44:50
23 Q. There is only one page and I can 10:44:54
24 scan down. 10:44:58
25 A. Right, but -- 10:44:59
CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC.
1-877-DEPO-YOU
10 of 281
FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022
11
DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT
1 Michael Hayden Sanford
2 Q. No, I cannot. Okay. You know, I 10:45:00
3 cannot do that. 10:45:05
4 A. All right. Just under view, if 10:45:06
5 you go to view -- one second. 10:45:09
6 Q. Can you see the content of 10:45:12
7 Exhibit 303? 10:45:13
8 A. One second. I can, but there is 10:45:14
9 also another window. Please move this window 10:45:20
10 away from -- 10:45:22
11 Q. Okay. Hold on for one second. 10:45:23
12 All right. 10:45:25
13 A. It was pretty good, though. If 10:45:27
14 you go to view, you see at the top of your 10:45:30
15 thing, just make it single page view. 10:45:33
16 Q. Mr. Sanford, can you see the 10:45:35
17 content of Exhibit 303? 10:45:36
18 A. One second. Hold on. Yes, I can 10:45:38
19 see the content. 10:45:43
20 Q. Okay. 10:45:45
21 Do you see that on October 23, 10:45:45
22 2015 you e-mailed Steven Meister? 10:45:51
23 A. Yes, I see that. 10:45:57
24 Q. And you copied Nick Akerman on 10:45:58
25 the e-mail? 10:46:00
CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC.
1-877-DEPO-YOU
11 of 281
FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022
12
DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT
1 Michael Hayden Sanford
2 A. Yes. 10:46:00
3 Q. And -- 10:46:05
4 (Crosstalk.) 10:46:06
5 Q. And you attached a copy of what 10:46:07
6 you described as an October 22, 2015 10:46:13
7 Sweeny/interim-stay PDF? 10:46:19
8 A. I don't see that, but I see 10:46:20
9 the -- 10:46:22
10 Q. I'm -- can you see 10:46:22
highlighting
11 it now? 10:46:25
12 A. I see that notation. I don't see 10:46:25
13 the attachment itself. 10:46:28
14 Q. The attachment was not produced. 10:46:30
15 I'm showing you what was produced. 10:46:32
16 A. Okay. 10:46:34
17 Q. Okay. 10:46:35
18 Do you see that there is an 10:46:36
19 indication on the bottom that Judge Sweeny's 10:46:38
20 October 22, 2015 order is attached? 10:46:42
21 A. Um -- 10:46:44
22 Q. Do you see that? 10:46:49
23 A. Yes, I do. I do. 10:46:50
24 Q. Okay. 10:46:51
25 Why did you send Judge Sweeny's 10:46:51
CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING , INC.
1-877-DEPO-YOU
12 of 281
FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022
13
DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT
1 Michael Hayden Sanford
2 October 22, 2015 order to Mr. Meister? 10:46:56
3 A. Because, to the best of my 10:47:02
4 recollection -- in fact, I actually have it in 10:47:07
5 front of me, on -- 10:47:10
6 Q. Mr. Sanford, for some reason you 10:47:19
7 are mute. Can you unmute yourself? 10:47:21
8 MR. BERRY: (Telephonically) For 10:48:05
9 some reason you are muted again. Just 10:48:05
10 unmute yourself. I know. Just dial in 10:48:07
11 again or something. You are muted. You 10:48:11
12 are muted. Please dial in again. 10:48:13
13 Mr. Sanford is going to dial in 10:48:31
14 again. He went dead. 10:48:32
15 Q. Mr. Sanford, are you back? 10:49:06
16 MR. SCHRADER: Court Reporter, 10:49:23
17 are you keeping track of when he went 10:49:25
18 off the call and when he's coming back? 10:49:27
19 The Court REPORTER: Yes. 10:49:27
20 BY MR. BERRY: 10:49:27
21 Q. Okay, Mr. Sanford, can you hear 10:49:29
22 me? 10:49:33
23 A. Yeah, I did not touch. 10:49:33
24 Q. I believe it may have been my 10:49:36
25 fault, but, you know, we've got -- I'm not 10:49:38
CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC.
1-877-DEPO-YOU
13 of 281
FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022
14
DEPONENTCORRECTEDTRANSCRIPT
1 Michael Hayden Sanford
2 suggesting it's your fault. 10:49:41
3 A. Okay. 10:49:42
4 Q. Okay. 10:49:43
5 A. Can you please repeat your 10:49:48
Preview
FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022 1 DEPONENTCORRECTEDTRANSCRIPT SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF NEW YORK: PART 7 --------------------------------------x NORMA KNOPF and MICHAEL KNOPF, Plaintiffs, -against- FRANK M. ESPOSITO, DORSEY & WHITNEY, LLP, NATHANIEL H. AKERMAN and EDWARD S. FELDMAN, De fendants. Case No: 150315/2019 --------------------------------------x EDWARD S. FELDMAN, Third-Party Plaintiff, - against - ERIC W. BERRY, Third-Party Defendant. ---------------------------------------x March 11, 2022 10:39 a.m. Telephonic Deposition of Non-party Witness, MICHAEL HAYDEN SANFORD, before CINDY A. AFANADOR, Certified Shorthand Reporter, Registered Professional Reporter, Certified Realtime Reporter, Registered Merit Reporter, NYSRCR, NYSACR and Notary Public of the State of New York. CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC. 516-491-2694 www.cindycourtreporting.com CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC. 1-877-DEPO-YOU 1 of 281 FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022 2 DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT A P P E A R A N C E S: BERRY LAW PLLC Attorneys for Plaintiffs 745 Fifth Avenue, 5th Floor New York, New York 10151 BY: ERIC BERRY, ESQ. berrylawpllc@gmailcom (212) 355-0777 (via videoconference) MICHAEL HAYDEN SANFORD PRO SE 23 McKinley Drive 11:39:20 Montauk, New York 11954 11:39:22 (via telephone) MORVILLO ABRAMOWITZ GRAND IASON & ANELLO, P.C. Attorneys for 565 Fifth Avenue New York, New York 10017 BY: EDWARD M. SPIRO, ESQ. espiro@maglaw.com (Via videoconference) CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC. 1-877-DEPO-YOU 2 of 281 FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022 3 DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT 1 2 PAYKIN KRIEG & ADAMS, LLP 3 Attorneys for Third-Party Defendant Eric Berry 4 2500 Westchester Avenue, Suite 1071 5 Purchase, New York 10577 6 BY: DAVID A. SCHRADER, ESQ. 7 dschrader@pkalaw.com 8 (212) 725-4423 9 (Via videoconference) 10 11 12 13 ALSO PRESENT: 14 Nathaniel H. Akerman 15 Frank M. Esposito 16 Edward S. Feldman 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC. 1-877-DEPO-YOU 3 of 281 FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022 4 DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT 1 2 IT IS HEREBY STIPULATED AND 3 AGREED by and between the attorneys 4 for the respective parties herein, 5 that the filing, sealing and 6 certification of the within deposition 7 be waived. 8 IT IS FURTHER STIPULATED AND 9 AGREED that all objections, except 10 as to the form of the question, 11 shall be reserved to the time of the 12 trial. 13 IT IS FURTHER STIPULATED AND 14 AGREED that the within deposition 15 may be sworn to and signed before 16 any officer authorized to administer 17 an oath with the same force and 18 effect as if signed and sworn to 19 before the Court. 20 21 22 - oOo - 23 24 25 CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC. 1-877-DEPO-YOU 4 of 281 FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022 5 DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT 1 Michael Hayden Sanford 2 09:54:37 3 MR. BERRY: Mr. Sanford, can you 10:36:01 4 just recite that you understand that you 10:36:03 5 are testifying under penalty of perjury. 10:36:06 6 THE WITNESS: Yes. I understand 10:36:09 7 that my testimony today is under penalty 10:36:09 8 of perjury. 10:36:11 9 The Court REPORTER: Okay, and 10 Mr. Sanford, I'm just going to need you 11 to speak louder for me or closer to your 12 device, please. You are a little low 13 and I don't want to have an issue with 14 the audio. 15 MR. SANFORD: You know, I am 16 speaking very loud and I am right next 17 to my phone, so I don't think it's me, 18 but I will try. 19 The Court REPORTER: Well, I can 20 hear everybody and you are a little 21 muffled for me, so if you could keep 22 that in mind, please. 10:36:59 23 MR. SCHRADER: Why is the witness 10:36:59 24 not on video? 25 MR. SANFORD: Because this CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC. 1-877-DEPO-YOU 5 of 281 FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022 6 DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT 1 Michael Hayden Sanford 2 deposition was already agreed not to be 3 on video. That's what the stipulation 4 is and that's how we are going to do 5 this deposition. 6 (Crosstalk.) 10:37:14 7 MR. SCHRADER: This is David 10:37:14 8 Schrader. For the record, I didn't 10:37:16 9 stipulate to that. 10:37:17 10 MR. BERRY: I'm going to call you 10:37:18 11 right now. 10:37:19 12 MR. SCHRADER: I think it's 10:37:20 13 highly irregular. 10:37:21 14 MR. ESPOSITO: Miss Reporter, 10:37:25 15 This is Frank Esposito. I'd like to 10:37:26 16 note for the record that I have a hard 10:37:27 17 stop at 3:00 p.m. 10:37:29 18 Thank you. 10:37:33 19 The Court REPORTER: Thank you. 10:37:33 20 (Recess taken.) 10:39:10 21 MR. BERRY: I would like the -- I 10:39:10 22 would like the deposition to start. 10:39:18 23 The Court REPORTER: Are we on 24 the record? Are we on the record? 25 MR. BERRY: We are on the record. CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC. 1-877-DEPO-YOU 6 of 281 FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022 7 DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT 1 Michael Hayden Sanford 2 The Court REPORTER: Okay. 3 EXAMINATION BY 4 MR. BERRY: 10:39:26 5 Q. Mr. Sanford, how are you today? 10:39:26 6 A. I'm very well, Mr. Berry, how are 10:39:31 7 you? 10:39:35 8 Q. All right. Okay. So -- 10:39:35 9 A. I just want to have one thing, 10:39:37 10 normal stipulations, the only thing I would 10:39:41 11 like to stipulate to is the transcript itself. 10:39:43 12 I would like to stipulate that today's 10:39:48 13 transcript will not be distributed to anyone 10:39:51 14 other than Deponent Sanford until he has 10:39:54 15 reasonable time to review it and provide any 10:39:59 16 errata corrections, and I'm proposing just two 10:40:02 17 weeks, if we can agree that the transcript is 10:40:07 18 not otherwise distributed. 10:40:09 19 MR. BERRY: That's fine with the 10:40:12 20 plaintiffs and that's fine for the 10:40:14 21 third-party defendant. 10:40:16 22 THE WITNESS: Okay. Is that fine 10:40:18 23 with everyone else? Obviously, 10:40:19 24 Mr. Berry is producing the transcript, 10:40:22 25 so that's fine, correct? 10:40:23 CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC. 1-877-DEPO-YOU 7 of 281 FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022 8 DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT 1 Michael Hayden Sanford 2 MR. SCHRADER: I'm not 10:40:25 3 understanding that the transcript will 10:40:26 4 be distributed to whom? 10:40:29 5 THE WITNESS: To anyone other 10:40:30 6 than myself for two weeks upon when it's 10:40:31 7 completed it will be given to me so that 10:40:36 8 I can make any errata corrections and 10:40:39 9 only after that time frame will it be 10:40:41 10 distributed to anyone else. 10:40:44 11 MR. SCHRADER: No, I don't agree 10:40:46 12 to that. That's ridiculous. We can all 10:40:47 13 get the transcript when the transcript 10:40:51 14 is made so we can all review it while 10:40:53 15 our memory is still fresh, rather 10:40:55 16 than -- 10:40:57 17 MR. SANFORD: Okay. 10:40:59 18 (Crosstalk.) 10:41:00 19 MR. SANFORD: Everyone on the 10:41:01 20 call can review it, but it won't be 10:41:02 21 filed anywhere or given to anyone else 10:41:05 22 who's not a participant today. 10:41:07 23 MR. SCHRADER: That's acceptable. 10:41:10 24 MR. SANFORD: Is that okay? 10:41:12 25 Thank you. 10:41:12 CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC. 1-877-DEPO-YOU 8 of 281 FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022 9 DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT 1 Michael Hayden Sanford 2 MR. SPIRO: I should be free to 10:41:14 3 share it with my client as well. 10:41:16 4 MR. SANFORD: That's what we 10:41:18 5 mean, people on the call today and their 10:41:20 6 clients. 10:41:21 7 MR. SPIRO: Okay. 10:41:22 8 The Court REPORTER: And I just 10:41:52 9 want to state, Mr. Sanford, if I ask you 10:41:52 10 to repeat something, it's because I did 10:41:53 11 not hear you so just repeat exactly what 10:41:56 12 you said. 10:41:57 13 MR. SANFORD: No problem. 10:42:00 14 The Court REPORTER: And just 10:42:01 15 please try to speak any your phone you 10:42:02 16 are a little muffled for me. 10:42:04 17 MR. SANFORD: I'm not sure what 10:42:07 18 to do. I'm doing the best. I'm three 10:42:08 19 inches from my phone, but okay. 10:42:09 20 BY MR. BERRY: 10:42:41 21 Q. Is the witness ready to start 10:42:41 22 answering questions? 10:42:43 23 A. Yes. 10:42:44 24 MR. BERRY: Okay. Note the time, 10:42:45 25 it's 10:42. 10:42:47 CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC. 1-877-DEPO-YOU 9 of 281 FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022 10 DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT 1 Michael Hayden Sanford 2 BY MR. BERRY: 10:42:50 3 Q. Okay, Mr. Sanford, I already 10:42:50 4 asked you how you were today so let's go to 10:42:52 5 some other questions. 10:42:54 6 A. Eric, are you speaking? I don't 10:43:14 7 hear anything. 10:43:16 8 Q. I'm taking my time. 10:43:16 9 A. Okay. 10:43:17 10 Q. And I just have to close out some 10:43:18 11 screens, okay. 10:43:24 12 Mr. Sanford, can you see what I'm 10:43:25 13 screen sharing, which is Exhibit 303? 10:44:19 14 A. Yes. I think you need to make 10:44:26 15 it, yes, smaller, because it's -- hold on one 10:44:30 16 second. Can you give me full page view so I 10:44:32 17 see the whole page? 10:44:38 18 Q. I'm doing the best I can. Can 10:44:39 19 you read it now? 10:44:41 20 A. Well, I can read -- can you just 10:44:41 21 make it small -- not make it larger, but just 10:44:47 22 hit single page view so the whole page -- 10:44:50 23 Q. There is only one page and I can 10:44:54 24 scan down. 10:44:58 25 A. Right, but -- 10:44:59 CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC. 1-877-DEPO-YOU 10 of 281 FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022 11 DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT 1 Michael Hayden Sanford 2 Q. No, I cannot. Okay. You know, I 10:45:00 3 cannot do that. 10:45:05 4 A. All right. Just under view, if 10:45:06 5 you go to view -- one second. 10:45:09 6 Q. Can you see the content of 10:45:12 7 Exhibit 303? 10:45:13 8 A. One second. I can, but there is 10:45:14 9 also another window. Please move this window 10:45:20 10 away from -- 10:45:22 11 Q. Okay. Hold on for one second. 10:45:23 12 All right. 10:45:25 13 A. It was pretty good, though. If 10:45:27 14 you go to view, you see at the top of your 10:45:30 15 thing, just make it single page view. 10:45:33 16 Q. Mr. Sanford, can you see the 10:45:35 17 content of Exhibit 303? 10:45:36 18 A. One second. Hold on. Yes, I can 10:45:38 19 see the content. 10:45:43 20 Q. Okay. 10:45:45 21 Do you see that on October 23, 10:45:45 22 2015 you e-mailed Steven Meister? 10:45:51 23 A. Yes, I see that. 10:45:57 24 Q. And you copied Nick Akerman on 10:45:58 25 the e-mail? 10:46:00 CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC. 1-877-DEPO-YOU 11 of 281 FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022 12 DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT 1 Michael Hayden Sanford 2 A. Yes. 10:46:00 3 Q. And -- 10:46:05 4 (Crosstalk.) 10:46:06 5 Q. And you attached a copy of what 10:46:07 6 you described as an October 22, 2015 10:46:13 7 Sweeny/interim-stay PDF? 10:46:19 8 A. I don't see that, but I see 10:46:20 9 the -- 10:46:22 10 Q. I'm -- can you see 10:46:22 highlighting 11 it now? 10:46:25 12 A. I see that notation. I don't see 10:46:25 13 the attachment itself. 10:46:28 14 Q. The attachment was not produced. 10:46:30 15 I'm showing you what was produced. 10:46:32 16 A. Okay. 10:46:34 17 Q. Okay. 10:46:35 18 Do you see that there is an 10:46:36 19 indication on the bottom that Judge Sweeny's 10:46:38 20 October 22, 2015 order is attached? 10:46:42 21 A. Um -- 10:46:44 22 Q. Do you see that? 10:46:49 23 A. Yes, I do. I do. 10:46:50 24 Q. Okay. 10:46:51 25 Why did you send Judge Sweeny's 10:46:51 CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING , INC. 1-877-DEPO-YOU 12 of 281 FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022 13 DEPONENT CORRECTED TRANSCRIPT 1 Michael Hayden Sanford 2 October 22, 2015 order to Mr. Meister? 10:46:56 3 A. Because, to the best of my 10:47:02 4 recollection -- in fact, I actually have it in 10:47:07 5 front of me, on -- 10:47:10 6 Q. Mr. Sanford, for some reason you 10:47:19 7 are mute. Can you unmute yourself? 10:47:21 8 MR. BERRY: (Telephonically) For 10:48:05 9 some reason you are muted again. Just 10:48:05 10 unmute yourself. I know. Just dial in 10:48:07 11 again or something. You are muted. You 10:48:11 12 are muted. Please dial in again. 10:48:13 13 Mr. Sanford is going to dial in 10:48:31 14 again. He went dead. 10:48:32 15 Q. Mr. Sanford, are you back? 10:49:06 16 MR. SCHRADER: Court Reporter, 10:49:23 17 are you keeping track of when he went 10:49:25 18 off the call and when he's coming back? 10:49:27 19 The Court REPORTER: Yes. 10:49:27 20 BY MR. BERRY: 10:49:27 21 Q. Okay, Mr. Sanford, can you hear 10:49:29 22 me? 10:49:33 23 A. Yeah, I did not touch. 10:49:33 24 Q. I believe it may have been my 10:49:36 25 fault, but, you know, we've got -- I'm not 10:49:38 CINDY AFANADOR COURT REPORTING, INC. 1-877-DEPO-YOU 13 of 281 FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 05/16/2022 08:46 PM INDEX NO. 150315/2019 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 789 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 05/16/2022 14 DEPONENTCORRECTEDTRANSCRIPT 1 Michael Hayden Sanford 2 suggesting it's your fault. 10:49:41 3 A. Okay. 10:49:42 4 Q. Okay. 10:49:43 5 A. Can you please repeat your 10:49:48