Marvici v. Roche Facilities Maintenance LLC
- Paul Engelmayer
- 1:21-cv-04259
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
Marvici v. Roche Facilities Maintenance, Judge Engelmayer paused defense counsel’s withdrawal and gave Roche Facilities Maintenance LLC until April 20 to hire a lawyer.
Roche Facilities Maintenance LLC, its defense counsel, and the plaintiffs Chiala Marvici and Yasmine Fadil were affected. The company was given time to retain new counsel, while the plaintiffs’ request for default judgment against the company remained available for consideration if it stayed unrepresented.
What happened
In Marvici v. Roche Facilities Maintenance LLC, defense counsel asked to withdraw after reporting irreconcilable differences. The court found withdrawal warranted but noted that Roche Facilities Maintenance LLC, a company, cannot represent itself without a lawyer.
The court gave Roche Facilities Maintenance LLC until April 20, 2022, to retain new counsel and have that lawyer formally appear. It held the withdrawal request in abeyance until then, or sooner if new counsel appeared. If the company remained unrepresented, the court would consider the plaintiffs’ previously filed request for a default judgment against it.
Judge Paul A. Engelmayer also ordered defense counsel to promptly serve the order on all defendants and file a sworn statement confirming when and how service was completed.
The detailed version
- Marvici v. Roche Facilities Maintenance LLC · No. 1:21-cv-04259
- Paul Engelmayer
- Apr. 6, 2022
Background
On April 4, 2022, the court received a letter by email explaining the irreconcilable differences that defense counsel said justified withdrawing from the case. The court found withdrawal warranted and stated that it expected to grant counsel’s motion to withdraw.
Corporate Representation Issue
The court observed that withdrawal could leave Roche Facilities Maintenance LLC unrepresented. It explained that a company may not represent itself in court and therefore gave the company until April 20, 2022, to retain a new attorney and have that attorney formally appear.
Rulings and Further Procedure
The court held defense counsel’s motion to withdraw in abeyance until April 20, 2022, or until an earlier appearance by successor counsel for Roche Facilities Maintenance LLC. If the company remained unrepresented after April 20, the court would consider the plaintiffs’ previously submitted motion for entry of default judgment against the company. The court also directed defense counsel to serve the order on all defendants promptly and then file a sworn declaration or affidavit stating that service occurred and identifying the dates and methods of service. Judge Paul A. Engelmayer issued the order.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.