Doe v. The City of New York
- Laura Swain
- 1:22-cv-07910
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Tequan Doe v. The City of New York, Judge Swain dismissed the action without prejudice after Doe failed to follow court orders.
Tequan Doe and the defendants in the action, including The City of New York.
What happened
In Tequan Doe v. The City of New York, the court had ordered Tequan Doe to file an amended complaint using his legal name and providing his mailing address, email address, and telephone number. Doe was representing himself and received a final 30-day extension to comply.
The court had warned that failing to comply would lead to dismissal. The City of New York then asked the court to dismiss the action because Doe had not filed the required amended complaint within the extended deadline.
Judge Swain granted the City’s request and dismissed the action under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(b), without prejudice. The court also denied permission to appeal without paying filing fees and directed the clerk to enter judgment.
The detailed version
- Doe v. The City of New York · No. 1:22-cv-07910
- Laura Swain
- Feb. 2, 2023
Background
Tequan Doe filed this action against The City of New York and other defendants. The opinion states that Doe was proceeding without a lawyer. In an October 3, 2022 order, the court directed Doe to file an amended complaint that used his legal name and included his postal address, email address, and telephone number.
The court’s December 1, 2022 order granted Doe one final 30-day extension to comply. That order also explained that any request to proceed under a pseudonym or to file materials under seal had to include both a redacted and an unredacted version of an amended complaint that complied with the October order. The court warned that failure to comply with either order within the extended deadline would result in dismissal under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(b), which permits dismissal when a party fails to follow a court order.
The City’s Request
On January 20, 2023, The City of New York filed a letter asking the court to dismiss the action under Rule 41(b). The City cited Doe’s failure to comply with the court’s earlier orders. The court found that Doe had not filed a compliant amended complaint within the extended time allowed.
Ruling
The court granted The City of New York’s request and dismissed the action under Rule 41(b), without prejudice. The opinion does not decide the underlying claims. The court also certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without paying filing fees. Finally, it directed the clerk to enter judgment.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.