Ashton v. Al Qaeda Islamic

Background

This order concerns plaintiffs in four related actions within the multidistrict litigation concerning the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks: Ashton, Bauer, Burlingame, and Schneider. The plaintiffs, collectively called the Ashton Plaintiffs, moved for permission to amend their complaint under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 15. They also requested additional considerations to facilitate the amendment.

Legal standard

Rule 15(a)(2) allows a party to amend a complaint with the court’s permission and directs courts to freely grant permission when justice requires. The opinion explains that courts may deny amendment for reasons such as undue delay, bad faith, repeated failure to correct deficiencies, undue prejudice, or futility. The court determined that the proposed claims were not futile, would not unduly delay the proceedings or prejudice the Taliban, and were not filed in bad faith or with a dilatory motive.

Ruling

Judge Sarah Netburn granted the Ashton Plaintiffs’ motion. The court ordered that the Sixth Amended Complaint in Ashton, No. 02-cv-06977, be amended to add the parties identified in the plaintiffs’ exhibits as parties in the action against the Taliban. The amendments supplement, but do not replace, the existing Sixth Amended Complaint.

The court also ordered that prior rulings, orders, and judgments remain in effect as to all parties. Further service on the Taliban was not required because the prior service orders, including the order allowing service by publication, continued to apply.

The clerk was directed to terminate the amendment motion at ECF No. 8713 and related motions in Ashton, Bauer, Burlingame, and Schneider. The order did not decide the underlying claims concerning the September 11 attacks.