Pellegrino v. County of Erie

Background

Mark Pellegrino, appearing without a lawyer, opened a miscellaneous civil matter electronically in the Southern District of New York. He paid the $49 miscellaneous filing fee and submitted a cover sheet stating that he wanted to register a judgment from another district against the County of Erie, police officers, and other defendants. He did not submit a judgment or other material showing that he had a registrable judgment. Instead, his submissions alleged that the defendants had deprived him of his rights.

Pellegrino also filed a motion seeking admission to practice temporarily in the case. The opinion states that he was not a licensed attorney admitted to the bar of any court.

Court’s analysis

The court explained that, under its rules, a person representing himself cannot electronically open a miscellaneous civil action. A new miscellaneous action filed by such a person must be submitted on paper. The court nevertheless liberally construed Pellegrino’s filings because he was representing himself.

The court concluded that Pellegrino was not actually seeking to register a judgment from another court. It therefore construed the matter as a civil-rights action and directed the clerk to open a new civil case.

The court then examined venue, meaning the proper federal district for the action. Pellegrino stated that the events underlying his claims occurred in Erie County, New York, and that the defendants were located there. The court determined from the face of his submission that venue was not proper in the Southern District of New York. Because Erie County is in the Western District of New York, the court found that the action could have been brought there and that transfer served the interests of justice under 28 U.S.C. § 1406(a).

Rulings and disposition

The court construed the miscellaneous matter as a civil-rights action, directed the clerk to open a new civil case, and directed that the new action be assigned to Judge Cathy Seibel’s docket and then transferred to the United States District Court for the Western District of New York. The court denied Pellegrino’s motion for temporary admission to practice. It left to the transferee court the questions whether Pellegrino could proceed without submitting a complaint and whether he would have to pay the full civil-case filing fee.

The order closed the miscellaneous case and stated that no summons would issue from the Southern District of New York. The court also certified that any appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-free status for purposes of an appeal.