Martinez Herrera v. LDJ Contracting, LLC

Background

Irene Martinez Herrera filed this action on November 27, 2023, against LDJ Contracting, LLC and Luis DeJesus. DeJesus was served on January 3, 2024, and LDJ Contracting, LLC was served on May 16, 2024. The clerk entered certificates of default against both defendants on August 21, 2024.

Herrera later asked for permission to amend her complaint because of a recent Second Circuit decision requiring a plaintiff to show a concrete injury, as required by Article III of the Constitution, for claims under New York Labor Law § 195. The court permitted her to file an amended complaint on February 7, 2025. The amended complaint did not add any claims, so the court stated that the defaulting defendants did not need to be served again. The docket showed that neither defendant had responded to the amended complaint.

Order

The court ordered Herrera to comply by March 20, 2025, with Individual Practices Rule 4(B), which governs obtaining a default judgment against the defendants. A default judgment is a judgment entered when a defendant fails to respond or otherwise defend as required.

The court did not enter a default judgment or decide the merits of Herrera’s claims in this order. Instead, it directed her to complete the required procedure. Judge Philip M. Halpern warned that failure to strictly comply with the court’s Individual Practices and the order could result in dismissal of the entire action without prejudice for failure to prosecute under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(b).