Zeng v. Chell
- John Koeltl
- 1:19-cv-03218
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 5
In Zeng v. Chell, Magistrate Judge Parker ordered Marshals Service steps to serve two defendants and extended the service deadline.
Xiamin Zeng, Erlene Wiltshire, and Irwin Luperon; the Clerk of Court and the U.S. Marshals Service were also directed to take specified service-related steps.
What happened
In Zeng v. Chell, Xiamin Zeng’s amended complaint had not been served on Erlene Wiltshire and Irwin Luperon. Zeng was allowed to proceed without paying filing fees and therefore could rely on the court and the U.S. Marshals Service to serve the defendants.
The court extended the service deadline until 90 days after the summons was issued. It directed the Clerk of Court to prepare service forms, issue a summons, and give the necessary papers to the Marshals Service for service on Wiltshire and Luperon.
Magistrate Judge Katharine H. Parker also directed the Clerk to mail Zeng a copy of the order. The order addressed service of the amended complaint and did not decide the underlying claims.
The detailed version
- Zeng v. Chell · No. 1:19-cv-03218
- John Koeltl
- Oct. 5, 2020
Background
The court was informed that Xiamin Zeng’s amended complaint had not been served on two individual defendants, Erlene Wiltshire and Irwin Luperon. Zeng had been granted permission to proceed without paying filing fees, so the court and the U.S. Marshals Service were responsible for arranging service when the required information was provided.
Service deadline
The court explained that Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4 generally requires service within 90 days after a complaint is filed. Because a plaintiff proceeding without paying filing fees cannot serve the complaint until the court reviews it and orders that a summons issue, the court extended the service period until 90 days after the summons was issued. The court stated that, if service was not completed within that period, Zeng should request more time.
Order
The court instructed the Clerk of Court to complete a U.S. Marshals Service Process Receipt and Return form for each of Wiltshire and Luperon using the information in the addendum. The Clerk was also instructed to issue a summons, deliver the necessary papers to the Marshals Service, and mail Zeng a copy of the order. Magistrate Judge Katharine H. Parker signed the order. This was a service-related order and did not resolve the claims in the amended complaint.
Read the full 5-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.