Balkanli v. Knatz
- Gregory Woods
- 1:21-cv-05866
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In Balkanli v. Knatz, Judge Woods transferred Balkanli’s action to New Jersey because venue was improper or transfer served the interests of justice.
Muharrem Balkanli and the named defendants; the action was transferred from the Southern District of New York to the District of New Jersey, and the New Jersey court will decide whether Balkanli may proceed without prepaying fees.
What happened
In Balkanli v. Knatz, Muharrem Balkanli filed a self-represented lawsuit asserting trespass, forgery, and breach-of-contract claims against several defendants. The Southern District of New York said the complaint was unclear and that the listed addresses and likely events pointed to New Jersey.
The court concluded that venue did not appear proper in New York because Balkanli had not alleged that the defendants lived there or that substantial events occurred there. It also determined that transferring the action would serve the parties, witnesses, and the interests of justice.
Judge Gregory H. Woods ordered the case transferred to the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, directed that no summons issue from his court, and closed the case there. The court also denied fee-free status for an appeal, finding that an appeal would not be taken in good faith.
The detailed version
- Balkanli v. Knatz · No. 1:21-cv-05866
- Gregory Woods
- July 9, 2021
Background
Muharrem Balkanli filed this self-represented action as a purported miscellaneous case. The court determined that he asserted claims for trespass, forgery, and breach of contract, which did not fit the listed categories of miscellaneous matters. The Clerk therefore opened the matter as a new civil action. The defendants named in the caption were Stephen Knatz, Bekim Dushaj, Carmen DiMartino, Lin_Z Auto Services Inc., Loui Monico, ABC Towing, the South Hackensack Police Department, the Edgewater Police Department, the Municipality of South Hackensack, the Municipality of Edgewater, and the State of New Jersey.
Venue and transfer analysis
The court explained that federal law generally permits a civil action to be filed where a defendant resides, where a substantial part of the events occurred, or, in limited circumstances, where a defendant is subject to the court’s personal jurisdiction. The complaint was not clear about where the events occurred, but Balkanli listed New Jersey addresses for the defendants. The court therefore stated that venue did not appear proper in the Southern District of New York because Balkanli had not alleged that the defendants resided there or that a substantial part of the relevant events occurred there.
The court also considered transfer under 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a), which permits transfer for the convenience of the parties and witnesses and in the interest of justice. It stated that courts may order such a transfer on their own initiative. The court concluded that transfer was appropriate because the underlying events most likely occurred in New Jersey, where all defendants were located, and because the total circumstances supported proceeding in the District of New Jersey.
Disposition
The court ordered the Clerk to transfer the action to the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey and to mail Balkanli a copy of the order. It stated that the transferee court would decide whether Balkanli could proceed without prepaying fees. The court ordered that a summons not issue from the Southern District of New York and stated that the order closed the case. It also certified that any appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-free status for an appeal.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.