Wilder v. City of New York
- Laura Swain
- 1:20-cv-03887
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Wilder v. City of New York, Magistrate Judge Aaron ordered U.S. Marshals service after Alfred Wilder was allowed to proceed without paying filing fees.
Alfred Wilder and the six defendants listed for service: the City of New York, Project Renewal, the New York City Housing Authority, Mayor Bill de Blasio, the New York State Office of Alcoholism Substance Abuse Services, and Sera Security.
What happened
Wilder v. City of New York is an order about serving the defendants, not about whether Alfred Wilder’s claims are legally valid. Because Wilder was allowed to proceed without paying filing fees and was representing himself, the court said he could rely on the court and the U.S. Marshals Service to serve the defendants.
The court instructed the Clerk to prepare service forms and summonses for the City of New York, Project Renewal, the New York City Housing Authority, Mayor Bill de Blasio, the New York State Office of Alcoholism Substance Abuse Services, and Sera Security. Wilder must tell the court in writing if his address changes, and the court said the case may be dismissed if he does not do so.
Magistrate Judge Stewart D. Aaron also told Wilder about email filing procedures for people without lawyers and a legal clinic run by the New York Legal Assistance Group. The court ordered the Clerk to provide the necessary papers to the Marshals Service and mail a copy of the order to Wilder.
The detailed version
- Wilder v. City of New York · No. 1:20-cv-03887
- Laura Swain
- June 18, 2020
Background
Alfred Wilder was allowed to proceed without paying filing fees. The order states that, in such cases, the court and the U.S. Marshals Service are responsible for helping effect service of process, meaning formally delivering the case papers to the defendants.
Order
To permit service through the U.S. Marshals Service, the court instructed the Clerk of Court to complete a U.S. Marshals Service Process Receipt and Return form for each of these defendants:
- City of New York - Project Renewal - New York City Housing Authority - Mayor Bill de Blasio - New York State Office of Alcoholism Substance Abuse Services, identified as OASAS - Sera Security
The Clerk was also instructed to issue summonses and give the Marshals Service all paperwork needed to serve the defendants. The order does not decide the underlying claims or the defendants’ potential defenses.
Additional instructions
Wilder must notify the court in writing if his address changes. The court stated that it may dismiss the action if he fails to provide that notice. Because of the health crisis, the court encouraged people representing themselves to submit filings by email through the court’s temporary filing address. It also provided information about a civil-case legal clinic operated by the New York Legal Assistance Group and clarified that the clinic is not part of the court and cannot file papers for the court. A copy of the order was to be mailed to Wilder.
Disposition
Stewart D. Aaron, United States Magistrate Judge, issued an amended order of service. The order directs the Clerk and the U.S. Marshals Service to take steps to serve the listed defendants; it does not grant or deny a merits motion.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.