Barton LLP v. Maho Partners, LLC
- George Daniels
- 1:21-cv-03108
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In Barton LLP v. Maho Partners, Judge Daniels entered default judgment for Barton, awarding $256,816.50, interest, and costs.
Barton LLP received a default judgment against Maho Partners, LLC. Maho’s counterclaims were dismissed, and Maho was ordered to pay $256,816.50 in damages, 9% prejudgment interest, and $402 in costs.
What happened
Barton LLP sued Maho Partners, LLC, claiming that Maho failed to make payments required by a settlement agreement. Maho initially answered through its managing member, who was not a lawyer, and later obtained counsel.
Maho’s lawyer withdrew, and Maho did not obtain replacement counsel by the deadline set by the court. Barton asked for default judgment. The court also dismissed Maho’s counterclaims.
Judge Daniels adopted the magistrate judge’s recommendation after finding no clear error and entered final judgment for Barton. The judgment awarded $256,816.50, 9% prejudgment interest, and $402 in costs, and closed the case.
The detailed version
- Barton LLP v. Maho Partners, LLC · No. 1:21-cv-03108
- George Daniels
- July 7, 2022
Background
Barton LLP brought a breach-of-contract action against Maho Partners, LLC, alleging that Maho failed to make payments required by a settlement agreement. Maho’s managing member, who was not an attorney, filed an answer and counterclaims on Maho’s behalf. Barton twice informed Maho that it needed a lawyer, and the court twice adjourned an initial pretrial conference to give Maho time to obtain counsel.
Maho later appeared through counsel, but its lawyer moved to withdraw. The court granted that motion and ordered Maho to obtain new counsel within 30 days. After Maho failed to comply, Magistrate Judge Robert W. Lehrburger gave Maho a final opportunity to appear through counsel by March 14, 2022, warning that failure to do so would result in default and possible default judgment. Maho did not obtain counsel by that deadline, and Barton moved for default judgment.
Report and Recommendation
Magistrate Judge Lehrburger recommended granting default judgment against Maho, awarding Barton damages, prejudgment interest at the statutory rate of 9%, and costs. He also recommended dismissing Maho’s counterclaims. Neither party filed objections.
Court’s Ruling
Judge George B. Daniels reviewed the recommendation for clear error and found none, then adopted it in full. The court explained that a corporation may litigate in federal court only through a licensed attorney and that a non-attorney may not represent it even if that person is its sole shareholder. The court therefore agreed that Maho had failed to appear and was in default.
The court also concluded that Barton’s well-pleaded allegations established Maho’s liability for breach of contract. Because the settlement agreement specified the damages due if Maho failed to perform, the court found sufficient evidence supporting damages of $256,816.50, plus 9% prejudgment interest and $402 in costs.
Disposition
The court entered final judgment in favor of Barton against Maho for $256,816.50 in damages, plus prejudgment interest and $402 in costs. The court adopted the recommendation to dismiss Maho’s counterclaims, directed the Clerk to enter judgment, and closed the case.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.