McBride v. C&C Apartment Management LLC
- Ronnie Abrams
- 1:21-cv-02989
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In McBride v. C&C Apartment Management, Judge Abrams denied counsel without prejudice and ordered service of the complaint.
Robert McBride and the five named defendants—C&C Apartment Management, Luis Torress, George Brenton, Ivo Kellog, and Septimus Bailey—were affected. McBride’s request for volunteer counsel was denied without prejudice, while the Clerk and U.S. Marshals Service were directed to arrange service of the complaint.
What happened
McBride v. C&C Apartment Management concerns Robert McBride’s claims under federal and New York laws against C&C Apartment Management and five individuals. McBride was representing himself and had permission to proceed without paying filing fees.
The court said it was too early to evaluate the case and denied McBride’s request for a volunteer lawyer without prejudice, allowing him to apply again later. The court directed the Clerk and U.S. Marshals Service to issue summonses and serve the complaint on the defendants, with the service period running for 90 days after the summonses are issued.
Judge Ronnie Abrams also required McBride to notify the court of any address change and denied permission to appeal without paying fees. The order did not decide whether McBride’s discrimination claims were valid.
The detailed version
- McBride v. C&C Apartment Management LLC · No. 1:21-cv-02989
- Ronnie Abrams
- May 24, 2021
Background
Robert McBride, representing himself, brought claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 1981, and the New York State Human Rights Law against C&C Apartment Management, Luis Torress, George Brenton, Ivo Kellog, and Septimus Bailey. The court had previously granted McBride permission to proceed without paying filing fees. McBride also asked the court to request a volunteer lawyer for him.
Request for Volunteer Counsel
The court explained that, when deciding whether to request volunteer counsel for a person unable to afford a lawyer, it considers the apparent strength of the case, the person’s efforts to find a lawyer, and the person’s ability to investigate and present the case without assistance. The strength of the case receives the most attention. Because the case was at an early stage, the court said it could not yet evaluate the merits. It therefore denied McBride’s application for the court to request volunteer counsel without prejudice, allowing him to file another application later. The court directed the Clerk to terminate the motion at docket number 3.
Service of the Complaint
Because McBride had permission to proceed without paying filing fees, he could rely on the court and the U.S. Marshals Service to serve the defendants. The court extended the time for service until 90 days after the summonses were issued. If service was not completed within that period, McBride was instructed to request an extension of time.
The court directed the Clerk to issue summonses, complete the required U.S. Marshals Service process forms with the defendants’ service addresses, and provide the Marshals Service with the documents needed to serve the summonses and complaint on C&C Apartment Management, Luis Torress, George Brenton, Ivo Kellog, and Septimus Bailey.
Other Directions and Disposition
The court required McBride to notify it in writing if his address changed and warned that the action could be dismissed if he failed to do so. The court certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without paying filing fees. The order did not reach the merits of McBride’s Title VII, Section 1981, or New York State Human Rights Law claims.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.