Sims v. Kolohari
- Laura Swain
- 1:25-cv-09853
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In Sims v. Kolohari, Judge Swain transferred the case to the Western District of New York because the relevant events occurred there.
Ruth P. Sims’s case was moved from the Southern District of New York to the Western District of New York; the underlying claims against Monica Kolohari were not decided.
What happened
Ruth P. Sims sued Monica Kolohari over alleged rights violations arising from events in 2011 at the Strong Ties Community Support Clinic in Rochester, New York. Sims is representing herself and is currently at Central New York Psychiatric Center.
The court concluded that Monroe County, where the events occurred, is in the Western District of New York. It also determined that the Western District appeared more convenient because relevant witnesses and documents were expected to be there.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain ordered the case transferred to the Western District of New York and closed the case in the Southern District of New York. The court did not decide the underlying claims, and it denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees.
The detailed version
- Sims v. Kolohari · No. 1:25-cv-09853
- Laura Swain
- Dec. 1, 2025
Background
Ruth P. Sims brought this action without a lawyer against Monica Kolohari. Sims alleges that Kolohari violated her rights in 2011 while working at the Strong Ties Community Support Clinic in Rochester, Monroe County, New York. Sims is currently at Central New York Psychiatric Center in Marcy, New York.
Venue and Transfer Analysis
The court explained that federal venue generally is proper where a defendant resides, where a substantial part of the events occurred, or, in some circumstances, where the defendant is subject to the court’s personal jurisdiction. The opinion states that Kolohari’s residence was not specified, so venue in the Southern District of New York did not appear proper based on the defendant’s residence.
The court found that the alleged events occurred in Monroe County. Because Monroe County is within the Western District of New York, that district was a proper venue under 28 U.S.C. § 1391(b)(2).
The court also applied 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a), which allows a court to transfer a case for the convenience of the parties and witnesses and in the interest of justice. It reasoned that the underlying events occurred in Monroe County and that relevant documents and witnesses could reasonably be expected to be there. The court therefore found that the Western District of New York appeared to be the more convenient forum.
Disposition
The court ordered the Clerk of Court to transfer the action to the United States District Court for the Western District of New York. The order closes the case in the Southern District of New York; it does not decide the merits of Sims’s claims. The transferee court must determine whether Sims may continue without prepaying fees. The Southern District court also ordered that no summons issue from that court and certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith, denying permission to appeal without prepaying fees.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.