Wilson v. New York Society for the Relief of the Ruptured and Crippled
Wilson v. New York Society for the Relief of the Ruptured and Crippled, maintaining the Hospital for Special Surgery
- Analisa Torres
- 1:22-cv-09207
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In Wilson v. New York Society for the Relief of the Ruptured and Crippled, Judge Torres ordered Marshals Service service after Wilson received permission to proceed without fees.
Omar Newton Wilson and New York Society for the Relief of the Ruptured and Crippled, Maintaining the Hospital for Special Surgery; the order directs the U.S. Marshals Service to serve the defendant.
What happened
In Wilson v. New York Society for the Relief of the Ruptured and Crippled, Omar Newton Wilson sued his former employer, alleging religious discrimination under federal, state, and city laws related to a requested religious exemption from COVID-19 vaccination and the termination of his employment.
Because Wilson was allowed to proceed without paying court fees, the court directed the Clerk to prepare the paperwork and summons and deliver them to the U.S. Marshals Service for service on the defendant. The court said Wilson should request more time if service was not completed within 90 days after the summons was issued, and warned that failing to report an address change could lead to dismissal.
Judge Analisa Torres’s order addressed service of the lawsuit, not whether Wilson’s discrimination claims were valid. The Clerk was also directed to mail Wilson an information package.
The detailed version
- Wilson v. New York Society for the Relief of the Ruptured and Crippled · No. 1:22-cv-09207
- Analisa Torres
- Nov. 8, 2022
Background
Omar Newton Wilson, proceeding without a lawyer, brought claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the New York State Human Rights Law, and the New York City Human Rights Law. He alleged that his former employer discriminated against him because of his religion by refusing to give him a religious exemption from COVID-19 vaccination and by terminating his employment.
The court had previously granted Wilson permission to proceed without prepaying filing fees. In such cases, the court and the U.S. Marshals Service can handle service of the summons and complaint.
Order
The court directed the Clerk of Court to complete a U.S. Marshals Service Process Receipt and Return form for New York Society for the Relief of the Ruptured and Crippled, Maintaining the Hospital for Special Surgery. The Clerk was also directed to issue a summons and provide the Marshals Service with the paperwork needed to serve the defendant at the service address listed in the order.
The court stated that if the complaint was not served within 90 days after the summons was issued, Wilson should ask for an extension of time. The order explains that the 90-day period begins after the summons is issued because Wilson could not serve the papers before the court reviewed the complaint and directed that a summons be issued. Wilson was also required to notify the court in writing if his address changed; the court stated that it could dismiss the action if he failed to do so. The Clerk was directed to mail Wilson an information package.
Disposition and significance
Judge Analisa Torres ordered steps to arrange service of the lawsuit. The opinion does not decide the merits of Wilson’s discrimination allegations or state whether the defendant must ultimately respond successfully to those claims.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.