Rojas v. Family Deli 4 Inc
Henry Rojas v. Family Deli 4 Inc, doing business as Family Deli 4 Tremont, and Hassan Korain
- Clarke
- 1:24-cv-00230
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Henry Rojas v. Family Deli 4 Inc., Judge Clarke granted counsel Joseph Altman’s motion to withdraw for Family Deli 4 Inc. and paused proceedings for 30 days.
Family Deli 4 Inc. must retain new counsel and enter an appearance by November 24, 2025; the proceedings and associated deadlines were stayed for 30 days. Joseph A. Altman was permitted to seek relief as the company’s counsel after serving the order and filing proof of service.
What happened
In Henry Rojas v. Family Deli 4 Inc., Joseph A. Altman asked to stop representing Family Deli 4 Inc., which does business as Family Deli 4 Tremont. The opinion does not state whether Hassan Korain had separate counsel.
The court said it would grant Altman’s motion after he served the order on Family Deli 4 Inc. and filed proof of service by October 28, 2025. It paused the case and related deadlines for 30 days so the defendants could retain new counsel, with any new lawyer required to appear by November 24, 2025.
Judge Jessica G. L. Clarke reminded Family Deli 4 Inc. that a corporation cannot represent itself in federal court and must retain a lawyer. If it failed to do so and enter an appearance, the court said it could enter a default judgment against the company.
The detailed version
- Rojas v. Family Deli 4 Inc · No. 1:24-cv-00230
- Clarke
- Oct. 24, 2025
Background
Joseph A. Altman moved to be relieved as counsel for Defendant Family Deli 4 Inc., doing business as Family Deli 4 Tremont. The opinion does not describe the underlying claims or state whether Defendant Hassan Korain had separate counsel.
Court’s Action
The court stated that it would grant Altman’s motion, but first required him to serve the order on Family Deli 4 Inc. and file proof of service by October 28, 2025.
The court stayed the proceedings and associated deadlines for 30 days to allow the defendants to retain new counsel. Any new counsel appearances had to be entered by November 24, 2025.
Corporate Representation and Possible Consequence
The court reminded Family Deli 4 Inc. that it must retain new counsel and may not proceed without a lawyer because a corporation may appear in federal court only through counsel. The court stated that if Family Deli 4 Inc. failed to retain new counsel and enter an appearance, default judgment might be entered against it.
Disposition
The court will grant the motion for Joseph A. Altman to be relieved as counsel for Family Deli 4 Inc., subject to the stated service requirement, and stayed the proceedings for 30 days.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.