Keung v. Saint Anna House Bakery, Inc.
- Paul Engelmayer
- 1:21-cv-06684
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
Keung v. Saint Anna House Bakery was dismissed without prejudice for failure to prosecute, according to Judge Engelmayer.
The plaintiff, Lin Kwok Keung, whose case was dismissed without prejudice; the defendants were not required to respond further because the case was closed.
What happened
In Keung v. Saint Anna House Bakery, the plaintiff sued Saint Anna House Bakery, Inc., doing business as Manna House Bakery, and other defendants. The defendants were served but did not appear or respond to the complaint.
The court ordered the plaintiff to explain why the case should not be dismissed because the plaintiff had not moved the case forward. The court extended the deadline several times, but the plaintiff did not request a certificate of default, seek default judgment, or otherwise take action.
Judge Engelmayer dismissed the case without prejudice under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(b) and the court’s inherent authority because of the plaintiff’s failure to prosecute. The clerk was directed to close the case.
The detailed version
- Keung v. Saint Anna House Bakery, Inc. · No. 1:21-cv-06684
- Paul Engelmayer
- Mar. 31, 2022
Background
Lin Kwok Keung filed the complaint on August 8, 2021. The defendants were served on September 13, 2021, and their answers were due on October 4, 2021. They did not appear or otherwise respond.
Failure to Prosecute
On October 28, 2021, the court ordered the plaintiff to show why the case should not be dismissed for failure to prosecute under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41. The order explained that the plaintiff could show cause by requesting a certificate of default from the clerk and filing a motion for default judgment. The court later extended the deadline to December 8, 2021, and then to January 7, 2021, as stated in the opinion.
The plaintiff did not request a certificate of default, file a motion for default judgment, or take any other action to advance the case after the order to show cause.
Ruling
The court dismissed the case, without prejudice, under Rule 41(b) and the court’s inherent authority because of the plaintiff’s failure to prosecute. “Without prejudice” means the dismissal did not bar refiling based on the dismissal itself. The clerk was directed to close the case.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.