Alexander v. Private Protective Services, Inc.
- Stewart Aaron
- 1:19-cv-10004
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Alexander v. Private Protective Services, Magistrate Judge Aaron denied Alexander’s default-judgment motion without prejudice because no Clerk’s Certificate of Default had been entered.
Jeriel Alexander’s request for default judgment was denied without prejudice; Private Protective Services, Inc. was not subjected to a default judgment by this order.
What happened
In Alexander v. Private Protective Services, Jeriel Alexander sued Private Protective Services, Inc. The company was served through the New York Secretary of State, but the opinion states that it had not responded by the deadline.
Alexander, who was representing himself, asked the court for a default judgment. The court explained that the Clerk of Court first had to enter a Clerk’s Certificate of Default before Alexander could seek that judgment.
Magistrate Judge Stewart D. Aaron denied the motion without prejudice. The order allowed Alexander to renew the motion after filing the proposed certificate and supporting affidavit required for the Clerk to enter the certificate.
The detailed version
- Alexander v. Private Protective Services, Inc. · No. 1:19-cv-10004
- Stewart Aaron
- Apr. 14, 2021
Background
The U.S. Marshals Service reported that Private Protective Services, Inc. had been served with the summons and complaint on March 11, 2021, through personal service on the New York Secretary of State, the statutory service agent for a business corporation. The defendant’s federal response period expired on April 1, 2021. The opinion also states that 30 days had elapsed without a response.
On April 9, 2021, Jeriel Alexander, acting without a lawyer, moved for default judgment.
Court’s analysis
The court explained that a Clerk’s Certificate of Default must be entered before a plaintiff may move for default judgment. No such certificate had been entered in this case. The court therefore did not decide whether Alexander was entitled to judgment on the claims.
Ruling
Magistrate Judge Stewart D. Aaron denied Alexander’s Motion for Default Judgment without prejudice. The order stated that Alexander could renew the motion after the Clerk of Court entered a Clerk’s Certificate of Default. To allow that process to begin, Alexander was required to file a proposed certificate and a supporting affidavit following the court’s stated procedure.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.