Greer v. Fox Corporation
- Laura Swain
- 1:20-cv-05484
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In Greer v. Carlson, Judge Swain denied Blake Neff’s motion to vacate a default as moot after Greer filed a superseding complaint.
The ruling directly affected Blake Neff by eliminating the default entered against him and affected Steven E. Greer because the default could not remain in place after his amended complaint superseded the earlier pleading.
What happened
In Greer v. Carlson, pro se plaintiff Steven E. Greer sued several defendants, including Blake Neff, asserting claims that included copyright infringement, unfair competition, and defamation. The Clerk entered a default against Neff after Greer sought one, and Neff moved to vacate it.
While that motion was pending, the court allowed Greer to file a Second Amended Complaint. Greer filed it on time and again named Neff as a defendant. The new complaint replaced the earlier complaint, so the earlier default no longer had legal effect.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain denied Neff’s motion to vacate the default as moot and directed the Clerk to strike the default entry. The case remained assigned to Magistrate Judge Aaron for general pretrial management.
The detailed version
- Greer v. Fox Corporation · No. 1:20-cv-05484
- Laura Swain
- Apr. 30, 2021
Background
Steven E. Greer, proceeding without a lawyer, brought claims including copyright infringement, unfair competition, and defamation against several defendants, including Blake Neff. After Neff had not yet appeared, Greer filed a proposed certificate of default. The Clerk later entered a certificate of default against Neff. Neff then moved to vacate that entry, arguing that he had not been properly served.
The court had previously granted the defendants’ motion to dismiss for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction but allowed Greer to file a Second Amended Complaint. Greer timely filed that complaint, again naming Neff as a defendant.
Court’s Reasoning
The court explained that when a plaintiff files an amended complaint that becomes operative, an earlier entry of default based on the superseded complaint becomes moot. The Second Amended Complaint replaced the earlier Amended Complaint. As a result, the default entered against Neff on the earlier complaint became a legal nullity.
Ruling
Judge Laura Taylor Swain denied Neff’s motion to vacate the Clerk’s certificate of default as moot. The court directed the Clerk to strike the default entry at docket entry 65. The order resolved docket entry 75 and left the case referred to Magistrate Judge Aaron for general pretrial management.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.