Jackson v. Pagan

Background

Thomas Jackson moved for entry of default judgment against Sergeant E. Pagan. Default judgment is a judgment entered when a defendant fails to respond to a complaint.

The Defendant’s Response

The court stated that Pagan was served by mail on September 11, 2020. Under the applicable local standing order, Pagan had 60 days from the mailing or delivery of a completed acknowledgment of receipt to file and serve an answer or another responsive pleading. Pagan’s attorney acknowledged service on September 11, so the deadline was November 11, 2020.

Pagan filed an answer on November 10, 2020, and docketed proof that the answer had been served on Jackson by mail. The answer denied most allegations, admitted some allegations concerning Jackson’s status and Pagan’s role, and asserted several defenses, including failure to state a claim, official-capacity immunity under the Eleventh Amendment, qualified immunity, claim-preclusion doctrines, failure to exhaust administrative remedies, contributory conduct, and a New York statutory bar to certain state-law claims.

Ruling

Judge Vincent L. Briccetti denied Jackson’s motion for default judgment with prejudice because Pagan timely filed an answer. Because the court recognized that Jackson might not have received the answer, it attached a copy to the order and directed that it be mailed to him. The court also certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-free status for an appeal. The clerk was instructed to terminate the motion.