Manenti v. The Government of the USA
- Laura Swain
- 1:22-cv-02292
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In Manenti v. The Government of the USA, Judge Swain denied Manenti’s request to extend the appeal deadline because she showed neither excusable neglect nor good cause.
Gislene Cristina Manenti’s ability to obtain more time to file a notice of appeal was affected. The court denied her extension request and denied permission to appeal without paying filing fees.
What happened
In Manenti v. The Government of the USA, the court considered a letter from Gislene Cristina Manenti, who was representing herself, asking for help pursuing an appeal and for more time to file it. The court treated the letter as a request for an extension of the appeal deadline.
Because the opposing party was the Government of the United States, Manenti had 60 days from the July 18, 2022 entry of the earlier judgment to file a notice of appeal. She did not file one by September 16, and she filed her letter on September 26, within the time allowed to request an extension. But she did not show a legally acceptable reason for the delay.
Judge Swain denied the request for an extension because Manenti showed neither excusable neglect nor good cause. The court also ruled that an appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without paying filing fees.
The detailed version
- Manenti v. The Government of the USA · No. 1:22-cv-02292
- Laura Swain
- Oct. 21, 2022
Background
The court had previously dismissed this action for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction in an order and judgment entered on July 18, 2022. Gislene Cristina Manenti, who was representing herself, later sent the court a letter stating that she lived in Brazil, could not visit a lawyer, and wanted a public prosecutor or free lawyer to file an appeal for her.
Motion and deadline
The court construed Manenti’s letter as a motion under Rule 4(a)(5) of the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure for an extension of time to file a notice of appeal. Because one party was the Government of the United States, Manenti had 60 days from the judgment’s entry date to file a timely notice of appeal. That period ended on September 16, 2022. A motion for an extension had to be filed within the next 30 days; because the thirtieth day fell on a Sunday, the deadline was October 17, 2022. Manenti filed her letter on September 26, so the motion itself was timely.
Court’s analysis
To obtain an extension, Manenti had to show either excusable neglect or good cause. Excusable neglect is evaluated using factors that include prejudice to the other side, the length and effect of the delay, the reason for the delay and whether it was within the person’s control, and whether the person acted in good faith. Good cause applies when the failure to meet the deadline was beyond the person’s control and involved no fault.
The court concluded that Manenti provided no basis to find either excusable neglect or good cause. It therefore denied her Rule 4(a)(5) motion for an extension of time to file a notice of appeal.
Disposition
The court denied the motion for an extension of time. It also certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that an appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without paying the required filing fees.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.