Allen v. John/Jane Doe
- Laura Swain
- 1:23-cv-11328
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Allen v. John/Jane Doe, Judge Swain denied Marcus Allen’s request for a lawyer because transfer ended this court’s jurisdiction.
Marcus Allen’s request for appointed counsel was denied in the Southern District of New York; the court directed that any such request be filed in the District of Maryland and restricted further filings under the closed case number.
What happened
In Marcus Allen v. John/Jane Doe, the court had transferred the action to the United States District Court for the District of Maryland before Marcus Allen asked this court to appoint a free lawyer.
The Southern District of New York concluded that the transfer ended its authority to act because the District of Maryland had already received the case papers. The court said Allen had to file his request in Maryland.
Chief Judge Laura Taylor Swain denied the request for appointment of free counsel for lack of jurisdiction. The court also directed the clerk not to accept further filings under the closed case number, except papers directed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and denied fee-free status for any appeal.
The detailed version
- Allen v. John/Jane Doe · No. 1:23-cv-11328
- Laura Swain
- Mar. 25, 2024
Background
On January 22, 2024, the court transferred this action to the United States District Court for the District of Maryland. The Clerk of Court transmitted the action electronically on January 29, and the court received notice on February 2 that the District of Maryland had received it.
On March 25, Marcus Allen submitted a letter asking the court to appoint pro bono counsel, meaning a lawyer without charge to the requesting party.
Jurisdiction
The court explained that transferring a case removes the transferring court’s jurisdiction, meaning its legal authority to act in the case. The transferring court retains jurisdiction to review the transfer only if the party seeking review acts before the clerk of the receiving court gets the case papers.
Because Allen submitted his request after the District of Maryland received the papers, the Southern District of New York determined that it lacked jurisdiction to consider the request. The court stated that the request had to be filed in the District of Maryland.
Ruling
Chief United States District Judge Laura Taylor Swain denied Allen’s request for appointment of pro bono counsel for lack of jurisdiction. The Clerk of Court was directed not to accept further submissions from Allen under this closed case number, except papers directed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
The court also certified that any appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-free status for purposes of an appeal.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.