Walsh v. Planned Parenthood International
- Vyskocil
- 1:23-cv-00914
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In Walsh v. Planned Parenthood International, Judge Vyskocil accepted a late amendment, denied two motions, and dismissed three unserved defendants.
The pro se plaintiff; Planned Parenthood International; and the American Civil Liberties Union, the National Abortion Rights Action League, and The National Organization of Woman.
What happened
In Walsh v. Planned Parenthood International, the pro se plaintiff sent a second amended complaint directly to the judge’s chambers after the deadline for amending the complaint had passed. The court accepted it but warned that no further amended pleadings would be accepted.
The court denied Planned Parenthood’s motion to dismiss without prejudice as moot because the second amended complaint replaced the earlier complaint. It also denied the plaintiff’s motion for default judgment because the Clerk had not entered a default and the motion did not meet the court’s filing requirements.
The court dismissed the case against the American Civil Liberties Union, the National Abortion Rights Action League, and The National Organization of Woman because the plaintiff had not filed proof that those defendants were served. Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil also directed the Clerk to terminate the related docket entries.
The detailed version
- Walsh v. Planned Parenthood International · No. 1:23-cv-00914
- Vyskocil
- Oct. 3, 2023
Background
The pro se plaintiff mailed a second amended complaint directly to the judge’s chambers. The complaint was undated but postmarked September 26, 2023. The court had previously given the plaintiff until September 8, 2023, to file an amended pleading. The court accepted the late filing as a second amended complaint because of the special consideration given to people representing themselves, but warned that no further amended pleadings would be accepted.
The court also addressed the plaintiff’s failure to file proof of service for the American Civil Liberties Union, the National Abortion Rights Action League, and The National Organization of Woman. In an earlier order, the court had directed the plaintiff to serve those defendants and file proof of service by August 25, 2023, and had warned that failure to do so would result in dismissal as to those defendants.
Rulings
The court denied Planned Parenthood’s motion to dismiss without prejudice as moot. The motion had addressed the earlier complaint, and the court accepted the second amended complaint. The court set deadlines for any amended motion to dismiss, the plaintiff’s opposition, and a reply.
The court denied the plaintiff’s motion for default judgment. It explained that default judgment requires the Clerk to first enter the opposing party’s default. Because the Clerk had not entered a certificate of default, a default judgment could not issue. The court also found that the motion did not comply with the court’s filing rules, including requirements concerning the claims, subject-matter jurisdiction, a proposed judgment, service documents, and the Clerk’s certificate of default.
The court dismissed the case against the American Civil Liberties Union, the National Abortion Rights Action League, and The National Organization of Woman because the plaintiff had not filed proof of service for any of them. Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil directed the Clerk to terminate the docket entries identified as ECF Nos. 10 and 11 and to terminate the case against those defendants.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.