Torres v. Eastern District Court

Background

Henry R. Torres, proceeding without a lawyer, brought a federal-question action alleging that his constitutional rights were violated in connection with two civil matters he filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York. The complaint captioned the Eastern District Court as the only defendant. Torres resides in Brooklyn, New York.

Venue and transfer

The court explained that federal venue may be proper where a defendant resides, where a substantial part of the events occurred, or, in some circumstances, where a defendant is subject to the court’s personal jurisdiction. The court noted that the events underlying Torres’s claims occurred in Brooklyn, which is in the Eastern District of New York. It said that it was unclear whether venue was proper in either district based on the residence of any possible individual defendant, but that venue would also be proper in the Eastern District of New York because the relevant events occurred there.

The court applied 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a), which permits transfer even when venue is proper if another district would be more convenient for the parties and witnesses and transfer would serve the interests of justice. The court concluded that transfer appeared appropriate because the underlying events occurred in Brooklyn, where Torres resides, and the Eastern District of New York appeared to be the more convenient forum.

Disposition

The court transferred the action to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York. It directed the Clerk to carry out the transfer and stated that any pending motions would be adjudicated by the receiving court. The order closed the case in the Southern District of New York. The court also certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without paying filing fees. The order did not decide the merits of Torres’s constitutional allegations.