Balogun v. New York State Division of Human Rights
- Lorna Schofield
- 1:20-cv-10484
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Balogun v. New York State Division of Human Rights, Judge Schofield denied alternative service and ordered address information provided.
The ruling affects Abeeb K. Balogun, the NYSDHR and its six employees, and the New York State Attorney General, who was ordered to provide service-address information and report on possible acceptance of service by mail.
What happened
In Balogun v. New York State Division of Human Rights, the plaintiff sued the New York State Division of Human Rights and six employees. He told the court that he could not serve them in person because their office was closed to the public.
The plaintiff asked to serve the defendants by mail at their last known office address. The court found it unclear whether every defendant would receive notice there.
Judge Schofield denied the request for alternative service. She ordered the New York State Attorney General to identify addresses where each defendant could be served and to report whether any defendant would accept service by mail at the office address.
The detailed version
- Balogun v. New York State Division of Human Rights · No. 1:20-cv-10484
- Lorna Schofield
- Jan. 26, 2021
Background
Abeeb K. Balogun sued the New York State Division of Human Rights (NYSDHR) and six NYSDHR employees. The Clerk of Court issued summonses for all defendants. Balogun, who was litigating without a lawyer, told the court that he could not serve the defendants in person at One Fordham Plaza in the Bronx because the NYSDHR office was closed to the public.
Balogun asked for permission to serve the defendants by mail at their last known address: One Fordham Plaza, 4th Floor, Bronx, New York 10458.
Ruling
The court denied Balogun's request for alternative service because it was unclear whether mail sent to that address would give notice to all defendants.
The court also ordered the New York State Attorney General, described in the order as NYSDHR's attorney and agent, to determine where each defendant could be served and provide that information to Balogun and the court within 14 days. The Attorney General was also ordered to state whether any defendants would accept service of the summons and complaint by mail at the One Fordham Plaza address.
Judge Lorna G. Schofield directed the Clerk of Court to mail a copy of the order and complaint to the New York State Attorney General.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.