Cobb v. APWU NY Metro Union

Background

Kenya Cobb filed this action under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993. The opinion states that Cobb was proceeding without a lawyer and that the court had granted her permission to proceed without paying the filing fee.

Because Cobb had that permission, the court had ordered the U.S. Marshals Service to serve the defendants. The Marshals Service filed returns showing that several service attempts were unsuccessful. The returns stated that there was no response to mailed service and that in-person attempts also failed while employees were working remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Marshals Service later told the court that it had served the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York but had not filed proof of that service on the docket.

Cobb’s Request

Cobb asked the court to order service again and to extend, retroactively, the deadline under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(m). The court explained that when a plaintiff provides the information needed to identify a defendant, the Marshals Service’s failure to complete service constitutes good cause for extending that deadline. The court found that Cobb had provided the defendants’ addresses and that the record showed the Marshals Service had failed to complete service.

Ruling and Orders

The court found good cause for an extension under Rule 4(m). It instructed the Clerk of Court to prepare U.S. Marshals Service process forms, issue summonses, mark the forms for service on the United States, and provide the necessary paperwork to the Marshals Service for service on the United States Postal Service, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Nair Reghuvaran, D. Beete, Rolando Pasaq, Carol Cook, M. Felix, M. Burns, and APWU NY Metro Union.

The court also directed Cobb to notify the court in writing if her address changes and stated that the action may be dismissed if she fails to do so. It adjourned the initial pretrial conference from November 23, 2022, to March 27, 2023. The order did not decide the merits of Cobb’s Rehabilitation Act or Family and Medical Leave Act claims.