Adams v. Berkman
- Laura Swain
- 1:24-cv-04494
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In Adams v. Berkman, Judge Swain transferred Adams’s civil-rights case to the Northern District of New York for convenience.
James A. Adams and the correction officers he sued; the case will proceed, if allowed by the transferee court, in the Northern District of New York rather than the Southern District of New York.
What happened
Adams v. Berkman is a lawsuit by James A. Adams, who is incarcerated, against correction officers over alleged rights violations at Franklin Correctional Facility in Franklin County, New York. Adams filed the case without a lawyer in the Southern District of New York under a federal civil-rights law.
The court concluded that the alleged events occurred in Franklin County and that the relevant witnesses and documents were likely there. It therefore found the Northern District of New York to be a more convenient forum, although the opinion did not decide whether Adams’s claims were valid.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain ordered the case transferred to the Northern District of New York under the federal transfer statute. The case was closed in the Southern District, no summons would issue there, and the transferee court would decide whether Adams could continue without prepaying fees; the court also denied fee-free status for an appeal.
The detailed version
- Adams v. Berkman · No. 1:24-cv-04494
- Laura Swain
- June 21, 2024
Background
James A. Adams brought this case without a lawyer under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, a federal law allowing claims against state officials for violating federal rights. He alleges that correction officers violated his rights while he was incarcerated at Franklin Correctional Facility. The named defendants are C.O. M. Berkman, C.O. P. Buckley, John Doe #1, and John Doe #2. Adams is currently incarcerated at Upstate Correctional Facility. Both facilities are identified in the opinion as being in Franklin County, New York.
Venue and transfer
The court explained that venue may be proper where a substantial part of the events occurred. The alleged events occurred at Franklin Correctional Facility in Franklin County, which is within the Northern District of New York. Adams did not allege where the defendants reside, so the court could not determine whether venue was proper under the separate rule concerning defendants’ residences. Even assuming venue was proper in the Southern District, the court concluded that transfer was appropriate under 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a), which permits transfer to another proper district for the convenience of the parties and witnesses and in the interest of justice.
The court reasoned that the underlying events occurred in Franklin County, where Adams was incarcerated and the defendants were employed. It also considered it reasonable to expect that relevant documents and witnesses would be located there. The court therefore found that the Northern District of New York appeared to be the more convenient forum.
Disposition
The court ordered the action transferred to the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York. The Clerk was directed to transfer the case, and the action was closed in the Southern District of New York. The opinion states that the transferee court would decide whether Adams could proceed without prepaying fees. A summons would not issue from the Southern District. The court also certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-free status for purposes of an appeal. The court did not decide the merits of Adams’s civil-rights allegations.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.