Brown v. Janssen

Background

Vollie Andre Brown, Jr., who was representing himself, asked the court to appoint counsel on June 22, 2020. He argued that the strength, complexity, and seriousness of his claims made a lawyer necessary to present them effectively. The opinion identifies the matter as a habeas case.

Court’s reasoning

The court stated that a self-represented litigant has no statutory or constitutional right to appointed counsel in a civil case. Appointment of counsel in such cases is left to the district court’s discretion. After reviewing Brown’s petition, the court concluded that the case did not appear significantly more complicated than other self-represented habeas matters filed in the court. The court therefore found that appointment of counsel did not appear warranted at that time.

Ruling

Judge Becky R. Thorson denied Brown’s request for appointment of counsel without prejudice. The order addressed only the request for counsel; the opinion does not state that the court decided the underlying habeas claims.

Date and judge note

The supplied case information lists Patrick Schiltz and a filing date of July 9, 2020, but the opinion is signed by Becky R. Thorson and dated July 9, 2019. This summary follows the signed opinion for the judge and date.