Shih v. Flagstar Bank FSB
- Laura Swain
- 1:23-cv-03375
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 7
In Shih v. Flagstar Bank FSB, Chief Judge Swain dismissed the action because a nonlawyer tried to represent Shih and Ng.
Peter Feng Shih and Man Yi Cindy Ng may pursue claims themselves or through licensed counsel, but the action filed on their behalf by Peter Joseph Polinski was dismissed in its entirety. Flagstar Bank FSB, Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, and Fein, Such, and Crane, LLP were named defendants in the dismissed action.
What happened
Shih v. Flagstar Bank FSB involved claims brought in the names of Peter Feng Shih and Man Yi Cindy Ng against Flagstar Bank FSB, Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, and Fein, Such, and Crane, LLP. Peter Joseph Polinski said he was acting for Shih and Ng and sought damages, but the complaint was written and partly signed by him.
The court explained that people generally may represent themselves or hire a licensed lawyer, but a nonlawyer may not represent someone else in court. The court also found that Polinski’s arguments that anyone may practice law were not legally supported. It therefore dismissed the action in its entirety because Polinski could not represent Shih and Ng.
The dismissal was without prejudice to Shih and Ng bringing claims themselves or through licensed counsel. Judge Laura Taylor Swain also denied in forma pauperis status for any appeal, meaning the plaintiffs could not appeal without paying the required filing fees under that status.
The detailed version
- Shih v. Flagstar Bank FSB · No. 1:23-cv-03375
- Laura Swain
- June 12, 2023
Background
Peter Joseph Polinski filed the action in the names of Peter Feng Shih and Man Yi Cindy Ng. He described himself as a “third-party intervenor,” “Next Friend,” “Attorney in Fact,” and “Private Attorney General.” The complaint named Flagstar Bank FSB, Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, and Fein, Such, and Crane, LLP as defendants.
The complaint alleged that Shih and Ng had signed a $380,000 adjustable-rate mortgage promissory note with Flagstar Bank FSB in 2005. It asserted theories involving alleged misuse of trust funds, mortgage servicing, constitutional rights, federal criminal statutes, copyright infringement, and a foreclosure proceeding. The complaint sought $45,500,000 in damages and attorneys’ fees.
The case was filed with an application to proceed without paying filing fees, known as in forma pauperis status. Polinski signed that application for Shih and Ng. The court noted that Polinski did not indicate that he was a lawyer, and public records did not show that he was admitted to practice in New York or in the Southern District of New York.
Court’s analysis
The court explained that federal law allows a person to represent himself or herself, or to be represented by an attorney admitted to practice. It does not allow an unlicensed nonlawyer to represent another person. The court rejected Polinski’s arguments that law practice cannot be licensed and that the Sixth Amendment allowed him to act as counsel. The court explained that the Sixth Amendment does not provide a right to appointed counsel in civil cases.
Because Polinski had written the complaint and related documents and signed some documents himself, the court concluded that he was attempting to represent Shih and Ng. The court therefore did not decide whether Shih and Ng had valid claims against the defendants. It also noted that the complaint relied on arguments the court described as firmly rejected and associated with sovereign-citizen theories, but the stated basis for dismissal was Polinski’s inability to represent the plaintiffs.
Ruling
The complaint was dismissed in its entirety because non-attorney Peter Polinski could not represent the plaintiffs. The dismissal was without prejudice to Shih and Ng bringing any claims they wished to pursue on their own behalf or through licensed counsel. The court also certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied in forma pauperis status for an appeal. Judge Laura Taylor Swain directed the Clerk of Court to enter judgment.
Read the full 7-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.