Aobad v. Building Service 32 BJ Pension Fund
- James Oetken
- 1:23-cv-01730
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 1
In Aobad v. Building Service 32 BJ Pension Fund, Judge Gorenstein denied Aobad’s request for appointed counsel.
Saeed S. Aobad, the pro se plaintiff, whose request for court-requested volunteer counsel was denied for now.
What happened
In Aobad v. Building Service 32 BJ Pension Fund, Saeed S. Aobad, who was representing himself, asked the court to seek counsel for him.
The court said the papers filed so far did not show that his claim was likely strong enough to justify seeking volunteer counsel. It also said the case was not so difficult that Aobad could not address the relevant facts or expected issues.
Judge Gorenstein denied the request. The court said it could seek counsel without another request if later review showed that appointment was warranted.
The detailed version
- Aobad v. Building Service 32 BJ Pension Fund · No. 1:23-cv-01730
- James Oetken
- Aug. 11, 2023
Background
Saeed S. Aobad, who was proceeding without a lawyer, asked the court to request counsel on his behalf. The request was filed as Docket No. 40.
Court’s analysis
The court applied the factors described in Cooper v. A. Sargenti Co. The court concluded that Aobad’s application and the other papers in the case did not, at that time, show that his claim was likely to be sufficiently substantial to justify seeking volunteer counsel. The court also concluded that the case was not of a character that would prevent Aobad from addressing relevant facts or dealing with issues likely to arise. It noted that attorney’s fees are available for claims such as Aobad’s, which the court said provides readily available counsel in meritorious cases.
Ruling
Judge Gabriel W. Gorenstein denied Aobad’s request for the court to seek counsel. The court stated that it would seek appointment of counsel without another request from Aobad if later review showed that appointment was warranted.
Read the full 1-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.