Weekly Real Estate News
Three Compass executives, including Chief Executive Robert Reffkin, have asked a federal court in New York to quash subpoenas issued by the National Association of Realtors in litigation challenging NAR’s Clear Cooperation Policy.
Reffkin, Compass Chief Strategy Officer Ashton Alexander and President of Integrated Services Cory Perkins filed their petition October 23 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, according to reporting published October 26 by Real Estate News. The petition also seeks attorneys’ fees. WRE News has not independently retrieved the court filing or checked for subsequent docket activity.
Discovery Fight in ThePLS Case
The subpoenas arise in litigation brought by ThePLS.com against NAR over the association’s Clear Cooperation Policy. The policy generally requires a listing broker to submit a property to the MLS within one business day of public marketing, subject to applicable exceptions. Compass is not a party to that underlying lawsuit.
The Compass executives argue the subpoenas are unduly burdensome, overbroad and retaliatory. Their attorneys say the requests seek extensive documents and testimony, and allege that the timing and negotiations over depositions suggest an effort to discourage testimony favorable to ThePLS. Those are the executives’ allegations, not findings by the court.
NAR disputes the characterization. In a statement reported by Real Estate News, the association said it disagrees with the allegations and maintains that obtaining relevant evidence is part of its right to defend the case.
A Separate Front in the Listings Dispute
The subpoena challenge adds a procedural dispute to a broader fight over how private listings may be marketed and shared. Compass has also been involved in separate litigation with multiple listing services concerning cooperation rules and fines. WRE News previously covered Compass’s lawsuit against California Regional MLS.
A request to quash a subpoena is not a ruling that the subpoena is improper. Whether the court grants relief, narrows the requests or orders compliance remains to be determined.
Source: Real Estate News, October 26, 2026. The underlying motion and subsequent docket entries have not been independently reviewed.
