Legal Recovery Associates LLC v. Brenes Law Group, P.C.

Background

Legal Recovery Associates LLC filed the action in New York state court on January 28, 2022. Brenes Law Group, P.C., and Troy A. Brenes removed it to the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on March 3, 2022. On August 18, 2023, Legal Recovery moved to strike certain affirmative defenses and allegations in Defendants’ answer and counterclaim.

Magistrate Judge Moses issued a Report and Recommendation on February 13, 2024. The recommendation advised granting the motion and striking the first, sixth, and ninth affirmative defenses, along with the factual allegations in paragraphs 48–51 and 74–75, from Defendants’ answer. It also recommended striking the first and sixth affirmative defenses from the original answer filed by Defendants in an earlier related case. The parties had fourteen days to object, but no objections were filed.

Court’s Review

Under federal law, a district judge may accept, reject, or modify a magistrate judge’s report and recommendation. When no timely objection is made, the district court may adopt the recommendation so long as the record does not show clear error. Judge Ramos reviewed Magistrate Judge Moses’s recommendation and found no error, “clear or otherwise.”

Disposition

The court adopted the Report and Recommendation and granted Legal Recovery’s motion to strike. The first, sixth, and ninth affirmative defenses and the specified factual allegations were ordered stricken from Defendants’ answer and counterclaim. The first and sixth affirmative defenses were also ordered stricken from the original answer filed in the earlier related case. The clerk was directed to terminate the motion.