James v. Borough of Manhattan Community College City of University of New York

Background

Ayleen L. James brought this action without a lawyer under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, 42 U.S.C. § 1981, and the New York State and New York City Human Rights Laws. She alleged that her employer discriminated against her based on race, age, and sex. The court had previously granted her permission to proceed without paying filing fees.

Service of Process

Because James was proceeding without paying filing fees, the court explained that she could rely on the Clerk of Court and the U.S. Marshals Service to serve the defendants. Although the usual deadline is 90 days after filing the complaint, the court extended the deadline in this case to 90 days after the summonses are issued, because James could not serve the summonses and complaint before the court reviewed the complaint and ordered the summonses issued.

The court directed the Clerk to prepare a U.S. Marshals Service Process Receipt and Return form for Borough of Manhattan Community College and Eva Kolbusz-Kijine, issue summonses, and give the Marshals Service the documents needed to serve them. The court also instructed James to notify the court in writing if her address changes and stated that the action may be dismissed if she fails to do so.

Disposition

Judge Lewis Liman ordered the Clerk of Court to mail James a copy of the order and an information package, issue the summonses, complete the service forms using the listed addresses, and provide the necessary documents to the Marshals Service. This order concerned service of the lawsuit; it did not decide the merits of James’s discrimination allegations.