Compass execs ask court to quash NAR subpoenas in PLS case 

Three Compass executives, including CEO Robert Reffkin, are alleging that the National Association of Realtors is retaliating against them in order to pressure them not to testify in a suit targeting NAR's Clear Cooperation Policy.

On Oct. 23, Reffkin, Compass Chief Strategy Officer Ashton Alexander and Compass President of Integrated Services Cory Perkins petitioned the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York to quash subpoenas issued by NAR in a case in which Compass is not a party, ThePLS.com v. NAR.

The petition also asks the court to award attorneys' fees for the cost of responding to the subpoenas and litigating the motion to quash.

The related case: ThePLS.com, a pocket listings website co-founded by The Agency CEO Mauricio Umansky, sued NAR in 2020 after the association introduced the CCP. The complaint was dismissed in 2024 but refiled 16 months ago, and litigation has been ongoing.

ThePLS alleges that the CCP, which requires a listing broker to submit a listing to the MLS within one business day of publicly marketing it, violates antitrust laws. Compass has consistently decried the policy since its inception.

'Overbroad' subpoenas? According to Compass' attorneys, NAR sent "unduly burdensome, overbroad, and duplicative" subpoenas to the three Compass executives and to three Los Angeles-based Compass-affiliated agents — Chris Cortazzo, Josh Flagg and Tracy Tutor — seeking deposition testimony and documents.

"The requests cover a huge span of expensive topics" including communications with clients, ThePLS, NAR, the DOJ and other documents, according to the filing.

"[T]he subpoenas are plainly overbroad, which supports the conclusion that the subpoenas were issued to intimidate and harass rather than for legitimate information-seeking purposes," they added.  

NAR's response: "NAR disagrees with the claims in the filing and stands behind its right to pursue appropriate discovery, including obtaining relevant documents and information necessary to fairly and legally execute its case," an NAR spokesperson said in an emailed statement.

"NAR will continue to defend against the underlying claims and demonstrate that our policies promote a fair, transparent, and competitive real estate marketplace that benefits brokers and consumers alike."

Compass alleges intimidation: According to Compass, the company already produced more than 250 documents totaling over 1300 pages when the case was initially filed. 

Compass' attorneys allege that NAR issued its subpoenas only because ThePLS.com wanted to depose Reffkin, and when Compass said it might try to challenge that deposition notice, NAR implied it would drop its subpoenas. But when Compass proposed a compromise — offering Alexander as a deponent to both ThePLS and NAR — ThePLS agreed, but NAR changed its mind and tried to enforce its subpoenas, according to Compass.

That exchange "demonstrates that the subpoenas are retaliatory and oppressive and were served for the purpose of intimidating Compass's witnesses to not comply with PLS's subpoenas," the filing states.

Real Estate News has asked when NAR plans to respond to the filing in court and will update this story if and when a response is received.

Not the first time subpoenas have been questioned: In June, Compass agent Jason Haber, who co-founded the American Real Estate Association (ARA) with Umansky, said NAR had issued him a subpoena in the case. Haber said NAR was calling on the ARA to provide "All Documents and Communications related to the NAR Accountability Project," which he noted was shuttered before ARA launched, and that the request was not related to the claims in ThePLS case. 

NAR had also sought documents from UMRO Realty Group — aka The Agency — tied to unrelated lawsuits filed against Umansky and UMRO. A judge denied that request in August.