McGlynn v. Towers Investors.com Inc.

Background

David McGlynn began the action on January 3, 2019. He later moved for default judgment. Counsel appeared for Towers Investors.com, Inc., but that counsel subsequently moved to withdraw. The court gave the company time to obtain new counsel and warned that failing to do so could result in default judgment. The company did not obtain new counsel.

McGlynn later obtained a Clerk’s Certificate of Default and filed another motion for default judgment. The court’s September 22, 2020 order gave the defendant an opportunity to have counsel appear and oppose the motion. The opinion states that the defendant did not appear to contest entry of default judgment.

Court’s Analysis

The court reviewed the motion under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 55(b), which governs default judgments. It found that proof of service had been filed, Towers Investors.com had not answered the complaint, the time to answer had expired, and the defendant had failed to appear to contest the motion. The opinion also cites the rule that a corporate defendant must be represented and cannot represent itself without a lawyer.

Disposition

Judge Paul A. Engelmayer entered default judgment for McGlynn against Towers Investors.com. The court stated that a separate order would commission an inquest into damages, meaning a later proceeding to determine the amount owed. It directed the clerk to terminate the motion for default judgment at docket 40.