Lee v. SIA International Trading Limited
- Lorna Schofield
- 1:24-cv-05791
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 1
In Lee v. SIA International Trading Limited, Judge Schofield adjourned the default-judgment hearing and required SIA to appear through licensed counsel.
SIA International Trading Limited, which was required to appear at the rescheduled hearing through a licensed attorney.
What happened
In Lee v. SIA International Trading Limited, a hearing was scheduled for the defendant to explain why a default judgment should not be entered. A non-lawyer employee tried to appear for the defendant.
The court stated that an entity may appear in federal court only through a licensed attorney and may not represent itself. The court therefore adjourned the hearing to November 20, 2024, at 4:30 p.m.
Judge Schofield ordered that the defendant must be represented at the hearing by an attorney licensed in the United States and admitted to practice in the Southern District of New York. The order did not decide whether default judgment should be entered.
The detailed version
- Lee v. SIA International Trading Limited · No. 1:24-cv-05791
- Lorna Schofield
- Oct. 24, 2024
Background
The court had scheduled a hearing for the defendant to show why default judgment should not be entered. A non-lawyer employee of SIA International Trading Limited attempted to appear for the defendant at the hearing.
Court’s Ruling
The court stated that an artificial entity may appear in federal court only through a licensed attorney and may not appear without counsel. The court adjourned the hearing to November 20, 2024, at 4:30 p.m., using the telephone number and access code listed in the order. It also ordered that the defendant be represented at the hearing by an attorney licensed in the United States and admitted to practice in the court.
Effect of the Order
The order addressed how the defendant must appear at the rescheduled hearing. It did not rule on whether default judgment should be entered.
Read the full 1-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.