Gran Coramino LLC v. Stankiewicz
- Vyskocil
- 1:22-cv-09287
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Gran Coramino v. Stankiewicz, Judge Vyskocil ordered a default-judgment motion by June 10, warning the case may otherwise be dismissed.
Gran Coramino LLC must file any motion for default judgment by June 10, 2024, or the action may be dismissed for failure to prosecute. John Stankiewicz had not responded, and the clerk had entered a default against him, but the court did not enter a judgment against him.
What happened
Gran Coramino LLC sued John Stankiewicz, also known as Gary Stranger, in October 2022. The court directed Gran Coramino to serve him, and Gran Coramino later filed proof of service. Stankiewicz did not respond, and the clerk entered a default against him.
Gran Coramino had not yet asked the court to enter a judgment based on that default. The court ordered that any such motion be filed by June 10, 2024, under the court’s civil-case rules. It also said that any request for more time had to be filed by letter at least 72 hours before the deadline.
Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil warned that failing to file the motion by the deadline may lead to dismissal of the action for failure to prosecute, meaning failure to move the case forward. The order did not decide whether Gran Coramino was entitled to judgment or the merits of its claims.
The detailed version
- Gran Coramino LLC v. Stankiewicz · No. 1:22-cv-09287
- Vyskocil
- May 13, 2024
Background
Gran Coramino LLC filed this action against John Stankiewicz, also known as Gary Stranger, on October 28, 2022. On January 30, 2023, the court ordered Gran Coramino to serve Stankiewicz and file proof of service, warning that the complaint could be dismissed for failure to prosecute under Rules 4 and 41 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure if service was not made. After several status letters about Gran Corino’s service efforts, Gran Coramino filed proof of service on November 28, 2023. The opinion states that the proof of service indicated Stankiewicz’s response was due May 12, 2023.
Stankiewicz did not respond to the complaint. On February 22, 2024, Gran Coramino obtained a Clerk’s Certificate of Default. A clerk’s entry of default records that a defendant failed to respond, but it is not itself a judgment awarding relief. Gran Coramino had not moved for default judgment by the date of this order.
Order
The court ordered that any motion for entry of default judgment be filed by June 10, 2024. Gran Coramino was directed to follow the procedures for default judgments in the court’s Individual Rules of Practice in Civil Cases. The court stated that a request for an extension had to be filed by letter no later than 72 hours before the deadline.
The court warned that failure to move for default judgment by June 10 may result in dismissal of the action for failure to prosecute under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(b). It also stated that Gran Coramino remained responsible for prosecuting the case and that the action could be dismissed because of its chosen counsel’s failure to prosecute. The order set a deadline and warning; it did not enter default judgment, dismiss the action, or decide the underlying claims.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.