Doe v. Rooney
- Colleen McMahon
- 1:20-cv-00932
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In Doe v. Rooney, Judge McMahon transferred the unemployment-benefits action to New Jersey because New Jersey was the proper venue.
John Doe's case was transferred from the Southern District of New York to the District of New Jersey. The New Jersey court would decide his requests to proceed anonymously and without prepaying fees.
What happened
In Doe v. Rooney, John Doe, representing himself, sued federal and New Jersey labor officials over the denial of his application for New Jersey unemployment benefits. He asked the court to require the officials to ensure that he received benefits and also asked to proceed anonymously and without prepaying fees.
The court determined that New York was not the proper venue because the respondents and events connected to the claims were outside New York. It also concluded that New Jersey was the proper venue because the events occurred there and the requested benefits were from New Jersey. The court transferred the action to the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.
Judge Colleen McMahon directed the Clerk to transfer the case and said the New Jersey court would decide whether Doe could proceed anonymously or without prepaying fees. The Southern District of New York closed the case, did not issue a summons, and denied fee-free status for any appeal after certifying that an appeal would not be taken in good faith.
The detailed version
- Doe v. Rooney · No. 1:20-cv-00932
- Colleen McMahon
- Feb. 5, 2020
Background
John Doe filed a self-represented action concerning the denial of his application for unemployment insurance benefits from the New Jersey Division of Unemployment Insurance. He sought, among other relief, an order requiring officials of the U.S. Department of Labor and the New Jersey Department of Labor to ensure that he received benefits. Doe also asked to proceed anonymously and without prepaying filing fees.
The opinion states that the New Jersey agency found Doe ineligible because his “base year UI account” was less than $8,500. Doe argued that his combined “New Jersey and New York NU accounts” exceeded $30,000 for the relevant 2018–2019 base period.
Venue Analysis
The court applied the federal venue statute, 28 U.S.C. § 1391(b), which generally permits a civil action where the defendants reside, where a substantial part of the relevant events occurred, or, in some circumstances, where a defendant is subject to the court’s authority. The court said venue did not appear proper in the Southern District of New York because Doe alleged that the respondents lived outside that district and that the events underlying his claims occurred outside it.
The court also considered transfer under 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. The court concluded that transfer was appropriate because the operative events occurred in New Jersey, where Doe sought unemployment benefits from the State of New Jersey. It determined that venue was proper in the District of New Jersey and that the overall circumstances supported transfer.
Disposition
The court ordered the Clerk to transfer the action to the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey. It directed that a copy of the order be delivered to Doe and that service be noted on the docket. The transferee court was left to decide whether Doe could proceed anonymously and without prepaying fees. The Southern District of New York ordered that no summons issue and closed the case there.
The court also certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to proceed without prepaying fees for an appeal.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.