Peace v. 850 Bryant Street
- Susan Illston
- 3:19-cv-04691
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 1
In Peace v. 850 Bryant Street, Judge Illston extended the amended-complaint deadline but denied Peace’s request for appointed counsel.
Michael Peace’s filing deadline was extended, and his request for appointed counsel was denied; the court warned that the action would be dismissed if he did not file the amended complaint by January 10, 2020.
What happened
In Peace v. 850 Bryant Street, Michael Peace asked for more time to file an amended complaint and asked the court to appoint a lawyer for him.
The court granted the extension and set January 10, 2020, as the new filing deadline. It warned that failing to meet the deadline would result in dismissal of the action.
Judge Susan Illston denied the request for appointed counsel because Peace had not yet filed a pleading stating a claim or showing a likelihood of success on the merits.
The detailed version
- Peace v. 850 Bryant Street · No. 3:19-cv-04691
- Susan Illston
- Dec. 3, 2019
Background
Michael Peace asked for an extension of the deadline to file an amended complaint. In the same request, he asked the court to appoint counsel to represent him.
Extension of the Filing Deadline
The court granted Peace’s request for more time. It ordered him to file the amended complaint by January 10, 2020, and stated that failing to do so would result in dismissal of the action.
Request for Appointed Counsel
The court explained that, under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(1), a district court may appoint counsel for an indigent civil litigant in exceptional circumstances. The court considers both the likelihood of success on the merits and the person’s ability to explain the claims without a lawyer, considering the complexity of the legal issues.
Judge Susan Illston found that exceptional circumstances were not present at that time because Peace had not yet submitted a pleading that stated a claim or suggested any likelihood of success on the merits. The court therefore denied Peace’s request for appointed counsel.
Read the full 1-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.