Johnson & Johnson v. Powerful Swing LLC
- Jesse Furman
- 1:22-cv-05746
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Johnson & Johnson v. Powerful Swing LLC, Judge Furman postponed a default-judgment hearing and required proof that service on Powerful Swing was proper.
Johnson & Johnson and Powerful Swing LLC; the order also affected the scheduling and procedures for the requested default-judgment hearing.
What happened
In Johnson & Johnson v. Powerful Swing LLC, Johnson & Johnson asked the court to enter a default judgment against Powerful Swing LLC. The court had scheduled a hearing on that request.
The court required Johnson & Johnson to file a letter explaining whether serving Powerful Swing through the Texas Secretary of State was proper. Johnson & Johnson could instead request more time to correct any service problems. The court adjourned the hearing to October 6, 2022, and ordered Johnson & Johnson to send Powerful Swing a copy of the order and file proof of that delivery.
Judge Jesse M. Furman did not rule on the request for default judgment in this order. He postponed the hearing and required additional information about service before the court could proceed.
The detailed version
- Johnson & Johnson v. Powerful Swing LLC · No. 1:22-cv-05746
- Jesse Furman
- Sept. 23, 2022
Background
On August 25, 2022, Johnson & Johnson filed a motion asking the court to enter a default judgment against Powerful Swing LLC under Rule 55(b)(2) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and Local Civil Rule 55.2(b). A hearing on that motion had been scheduled for September 28, 2022.
Service issue
The court explained that it could not enter a default judgment unless it had jurisdiction over the defendant, which requires effective service of process. The order required Johnson & Johnson, by September 28, 2022, to file a letter brief addressing whether service on Powerful Swing LLC through the Texas Secretary of State was proper. The order cited Texas law authorizing service through the Secretary of State when the entity’s registered agent cannot be found at the registered office with reasonable diligence.
Johnson & Johnson could alternatively request, by letter-motion, an appropriate postponement to correct any service problems.
Ruling and schedule
The court adjourned the default-judgment hearing to October 6, 2022, at 9:30 a.m. The hearing would take place remotely by telephone. The court also ordered Johnson & Johnson to email or mail a copy of the order to Powerful Swing LLC by September 26, 2022, and to file proof of service by September 28, 2022.
This order did not grant or deny the motion for default judgment. It addressed the service issue and postponed the hearing.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.