Peralta v. Stellar Management Co. Inc.
- John Cronan
- 1:23-cv-09165
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Peralta v. Stellar, Judge Cronan ordered a service-status letter by March 8, 2024, warning the case may be dismissed if none is filed.
The order directly affects plaintiff Graciliano Johnny Concepcion Peralta and the defendants because it requires the plaintiff to report on service and warns that the action may be dismissed if the required filing is not made.
What happened
Peralta v. Stellar Management Co. Inc. was filed on October 18, 2023, but the docket did not show whether the defendants had been served. The plaintiff had not requested more time to serve them.
The court ordered the plaintiff to file a letter by March 8, 2024, stating whether service had occurred and, if not, why there was good cause for missing the 90-day deadline. The plaintiff must file proof of service by that date if service has occurred.
Judge John P. Cronan warned that the court may dismiss the case without further notice if the plaintiff does not file the required letter. The order did not dismiss the case.
The detailed version
- Peralta v. Stellar Management Co. Inc. · No. 1:23-cv-09165
- John Cronan
- Feb. 26, 2024
Background
The plaintiff filed the complaint on October 18, 2023. The docket did not show whether the defendants had been served, and the plaintiff had not requested an extension of time to complete service.
Court’s Order
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(m) generally requires a defendant to be served within 90 days after the complaint is filed. If service is not timely, the court may dismiss the action without prejudice against that defendant or order service within a specified period. If the plaintiff shows good cause for the failure, the court must extend the service deadline for an appropriate period.
The court ordered the plaintiff to file a status letter by March 8, 2024. The letter must state whether the summons and complaint had been served and, if not, why good cause existed to excuse the failure to serve within the 90-day period. The court required the letter even if service had already occurred. If service had occurred, the plaintiff also had to file proof of service by March 8, 2024.
Disposition and Warning
The court did not dismiss the case in this order. It warned that it may dismiss the case without further notice for failure to prosecute if the required letter is not filed. The order was signed by Judge John P. Cronan.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.