Jones v. Bank of New York Mellon Trust Company
- Laura Swain
- 1:23-cv-02104
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In Jones v. Bank of New York Mellon Trust Company, Judge Swain denied amendment as moot and protective relief without prejudice.
The order directly affects Tyrone C. Jones’s motions: he may file an amended complaint within 45 days, but his request for a protective order was denied without prejudice. The defendants are affected by the continuation of the case under the original complaint if no amended complaint is filed.
What happened
Jones v. Bank of New York Mellon Trust Company involves Tyrone C. Jones, who is incarcerated in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and is representing himself. He asserts claims involving breach of contract, New York General Business Law § 349, conspiracy, and alleged deprivation of rights under federal criminal statutes. He asked to amend his complaint and sought an order protecting trust assets.
The court denied the request to amend as unnecessary because Jones could amend once as a matter of right under the federal rules. The court said he could file an amended complaint within 45 days. It treated the requested protective order as a request for a preliminary injunction and found that Jones had not shown a likelihood of success or sufficiently serious questions supporting that relief.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain denied the protective-order request without prejudice, meaning Jones may renew it later. The court stated that all pending matters were terminated and denied Jones permission to proceed without paying fees for any appeal because the appeal would not be taken in good faith.
The detailed version
- Jones v. Bank of New York Mellon Trust Company · No. 1:23-cv-02104
- Laura Swain
- May 24, 2023
Background
Tyrone C. Jones, identified as a beneficiary of Mortgage Asset Management Series/Trust, brought this action while incarcerated in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He represented himself. The opinion describes his claims as involving breach of contract under New York General Business Law § 349, conspiracy, and “deprivation of rights” claims under federal criminal statutes. The court had previously allowed him to proceed without prepaying filing fees, although the opinion notes that prisoners remain responsible for the full filing fee.
Jones filed two motions: one seeking permission to amend his complaint and another seeking a “Protective Order Over Asset of the Trust.” He alleged that Anthony A. Winds, along with the Broward Sheriffs Office, had continued to harass the occupant and family of the beneficiary through visits to the asset. He sought an order prohibiting Winds and others from accessing or entering his property.
Motion to Amend
The court ruled that Jones did not need permission to amend because Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 15(a) allowed him to file one amended complaint as a matter of right within the applicable period. The court therefore denied the motion as moot. It allowed Jones to submit an amended complaint within 45 days of the order. If he did not do so, the original complaint would remain the operative pleading.
Protective-Order Motion
The court construed the requested protective order as a request for a preliminary injunction, which is temporary court-ordered relief requested before the case is resolved. The court explained that Jones needed to show likely irreparable harm and either a likelihood of success on the merits or sufficiently serious questions supporting litigation combined with a balance of hardships strongly favoring him.
The court found that, at that stage, Jones had not shown either a likelihood of success on the merits or sufficiently serious questions and a strongly favorable balance of hardships. It therefore denied the request for an order to show cause and denied the protective-order request without prejudice. The stated disposition leaves the request open to renewal at a later date.
Other Dispositions and Classification
The court stated that all pending matters were terminated. It also certified that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied Jones permission to proceed without prepaying fees for purposes of an appeal.
This is a procedural order because it addressed amendment and requested preliminary relief without deciding the underlying claims. Judge Laura Taylor Swain signed the order.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.