Prophete v. New York City Health and Hospitals
- Ronnie Abrams
- 1:23-cv-11117
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In Prophete v. New York Metropolitan Hospital, Judge Abrams ordered steps to identify Doe defendants and serve the hospital, and granted electronic-filing permission.
The order directly affects Alin Christopher Prophete, New York Metropolitan Hospital, the unidentified John Doe and Jane Doe medical staff, the New York City Law Department, the Clerk of Court, and the U.S. Marshals Service. It sets procedures for identifying the Doe defendants and serving the hospital but does not decide the underlying claims.
What happened
In Prophete v. New York Metropolitan Hospital, Alin Christopher Prophete, who is representing himself, sued New York Metropolitan Hospital and unidentified John Doe and Jane Doe medical staff. The court had already allowed him to proceed without paying filing fees upfront.
The court ordered the New York City Law Department to identify the Doe defendants and provide their service addresses. It directed the Clerk of Court and the U.S. Marshals Service to serve Metropolitan Hospital, and extended the service deadline to 90 days after the summons is issued. Prophete must file an amended complaint naming the Doe defendants after receiving their identities.
Judge Ronnie Abrams granted Prophete’s request to register for electronic filing. The court also denied permission to proceed without paying fees for any appeal from this order, stating that an appeal would not be taken in good faith.
The detailed version
- Prophete v. New York City Health and Hospitals · No. 1:23-cv-11117
- Ronnie Abrams
- Jan. 18, 2024
Background
Alin Christopher Prophete, who is proceeding without a lawyer, brought this action invoking federal-question and diversity jurisdiction. He sued New York Metropolitan Hospital, identified in the order as operated by New York City Health + Hospitals, along with unidentified John Doe and Jane Doe medical staff involved in his December 19, 2023 visit. The court had previously granted Prophete permission to proceed without paying filing fees upfront. He also moved for permission to register for electronic case filing.
Identifying the Doe Defendants
The court found that Prophete provided enough information for Metropolitan Hospital to identify the John Doe and Jane Doe defendants. It ordered the New York City Law Department to determine each person’s identity and service address and provide that information to Prophete and the court within 60 days.
After receiving that information, Prophete must file an amended complaint naming the defendants within 30 days. The amended complaint will replace, rather than supplement, the original complaint. The court will screen the amended complaint and may later direct the Clerk of Court to prepare service forms and provide the necessary documents to the U.S. Marshals Service.
Service on Metropolitan Hospital
Because Prophete was allowed to proceed without paying filing fees upfront, the court directed the Clerk of Court to prepare a summons and a U.S. Marshals Service process form for Metropolitan Hospital and deliver the required paperwork to the Marshals Service for service. The court extended the time for service to 90 days after the summons is issued. It stated that Prophete should request more time if service is not completed within that period and must notify the court in writing if his address changes.
Rulings
Judge Ronnie Abrams granted Prophete’s motion for permission to register for electronic case filing. The Clerk of Court was directed to issue the summons, prepare the service paperwork, mail Prophete an information package and amended complaint form, and send the order and complaint to the New York City Law Department. The court certified that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to proceed without paying fees for purposes of an appeal. The order did not decide the underlying claims.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.