Bartlett v. Tribeca Lending Corp.

Background

On January 29, 2016, the court barred Gregory Bartlett from filing any new civil action in the Southern District of New York concerning his 2007 state-court foreclosure action unless he first obtained the court’s permission. The earlier order required him to file a motion captioned “Application Pursuant to Court Order Seeking Permission to File,” together with the proposed complaint.

Bartlett then filed this new action against Tribeca Lending Corp., Franklin Credit Management Corp., and Franklin Mortgage Asset Trust 2009A. The opinion identifies Bartlett as proceeding without a lawyer. The new action arose from the same 2007 state-court foreclosure action.

Filing and Court’s Analysis

Bartlett did not comply with the earlier filing restriction because he did not submit the required, separately captioned permission motion with the proposed complaint. His complaint contained introductory remarks addressed to Chief Judge McMahon that summarized the complaint and asserted that he had good cause to file it.

The court considered whether those remarks could be treated as a request for permission to file. It concluded that the request had to be denied because the action was not a departure from Bartlett’s pattern of filings that the court described as vexatious and frivolous.

Ruling

The court dismissed the action as frivolous under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)(B)(i). It also certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied Bartlett the ability to proceed without paying court fees for an appeal. The Clerk was directed to mail the order to Bartlett and record service on the docket. Judge John G. Koeltl issued the order. The opinion did not decide the underlying foreclosure-related claims.