Dongguan Fengshang Industrial Co., Ltd v. Soho Partners Group, LLC

Background

On September 19, 2023, Dongguan Fengshang Industrial Co., Ltd filed a motion for partial summary judgment against Soho Partners Group, LLC. A motion for summary judgment asks the court to rule on a claim without a trial when the moving party contends that the material facts do not require a trial. The motion remained pending after the defendants’ attorney received permission to withdraw.

The court ordered the corporate defendants, including Soho Partners, to appear through new counsel by December 29, 2023. They did not do so. The clerk then entered a certificate of default against the corporate defendants on January 3, 2024. A certificate of default records a party’s failure to defend; it is separate from a later default judgment.

Ruling

The court denied the plaintiff’s motion for partial summary judgment as moot because the corporate defendants were in default. The order did not decide the merits of the partial-summary-judgment motion.

The court directed the parties to attend a telephone conference on February 14, 2024, to address the status of the action concerning Defendant Azrak and to set a schedule for the plaintiff’s anticipated motion for default judgment against the corporate defendants. Counsel for the plaintiff was also directed to promptly send Defendant Azrak a copy of the order at the address listed in the cited filing and by email if counsel knew an email address for Azrak.