Marom v. Town of Greenburgh
- Laura Swain
- 1:23-cv-00232
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 6
In Marom v. Town of Greenburgh, Judge Swain denied the mandamus petition for lack of jurisdiction and dismissed Naomi Marom’s claims without prejudice.
Michael Marom’s mandamus petition was denied for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction, and Naomi Marom’s claims were dismissed without prejudice because Michael could not represent her without being an attorney. The Town of Greenburgh, Frank Morabito, and Edye McCarthy were the respondents named in the petition.
What happened
In Marom v. Town of Greenburgh, Michael Marom asked a federal court to order Greenburgh officials to renew a building permit for his property and cancel a property-tax assessment. He filed the petition for himself and Naomi Marom, but Naomi did not sign it.
The court said Michael could not represent Naomi because he was not alleged to be a lawyer. It also ruled that the federal mandamus law does not give federal courts power to order state or local officials to act. The court therefore lacked jurisdiction over Michael’s mandamus request.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain dismissed Naomi Marom’s claims without prejudice and denied Michael Marom’s petition for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction. The court also denied leave to amend, denied fee-waiver status for an appeal, and directed the Clerk to enter judgment.
The detailed version
- Marom v. Town of Greenburgh · No. 1:23-cv-00232
- Laura Swain
- Mar. 9, 2023
Background
Michael Marom, appearing without a lawyer, filed a petition under the All Writs Act, 28 U.S.C. § 1651, on behalf of himself and Naomi Marom. He asked the court to order the Town of Greenburgh, its building inspector, and its tax assessor to issue or renew a building permit for property in Greenburgh, New York. He also sought to vacate the property-tax assessment on that property.
According to the petition, Michael had received a building permit in 2010, but a zoning dispute later led Greenburgh’s Zoning Board to rescind it. The permit was restored after a state-court proceeding, but Greenburgh later filed building violations and did not act on Michael’s 2017 application to renew the permit. Michael alleged that the property had deteriorated and that the tax assessment was arbitrary and unsupported.
Claims on Behalf of Naomi Marom
Naomi Marom did not sign the petition. The court explained that a person appearing without a lawyer generally may represent only himself or herself. Because Michael was not alleged to be an attorney, he could not bring claims on Naomi’s behalf. The court therefore treated the action as asserting claims only for Michael and dismissed without prejudice all claims asserted on behalf of Naomi.
Mandamus Jurisdiction
The court held that the All Writs Act does not create federal jurisdiction where none otherwise exists. The federal Mandamus Act, 28 U.S.C. § 1361, gives federal district courts original jurisdiction to compel an officer or employee of the United States, or a federal agency, to perform a duty owed to the plaintiff. It does not provide jurisdiction to compel state or local officials.
Because Michael sought a writ of mandamus against the Town of Greenburgh and its local officials, the court concluded that it lacked subject-matter jurisdiction and had no authority to compel the requested actions. The court denied the petition for a writ of mandamus and dismissed the action for lack of jurisdiction.
Leave to Amend and Other Dispositions
The court declined to give Michael leave to amend because it determined that the jurisdictional defect could not be cured by amendment. It certified that any appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-waiver status for purposes of an appeal. The court directed the Clerk to enter judgment and terminated all other pending matters.
Read the full 6-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.