EMPLOYERS INSURANCE COMPANY OF WASSAU
v.
REDLANDS CHRISTIAN MIGRANT ASSOCIATION, INC.
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The court held that dismissal with prejudice and default judgment were excessive sanctions for the plaintiff's non-compliance, given the circumstances involving the former attorney's difficulties and corporate reorganization.
Plaintiff sued for unpaid insurance premiums. The plaintiff missed a discovery deadline, leading the defendant to move for dismissal with prejudice an…
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Also, the cases Defendant relies on are nonstarters. Two cases involve pro se litigants disobeying court orders. See Ferrier v. Q Link Wireless LLC, No. 18-62851, 2019 WL 5260265, at *2 (S.D. Fla., Aug. 21, 2019) (granting a motion to dismiss with prejudice because the pro se plaintiff “willfully failed to comply with various orders and willfully failed to participate in discovery”); Ran v. Cook, No. 1:07-cv-249, 2010 WL 3489923, at *2 (N.D. Fla., Aug. 30, 2010) (dismissing the case with prejudice as a sanction for the pro se plaintiff’s failure to comply with multiple court orders). This case differs because
Plaintiff’s former attorney, and not Plaintiff, is responsible for the noncompliant conduct. In the last case Defendant cites, the court found the plaintiff to have engaged in willful misconduct because it failed to timely respond to discovery and a motion to compel, filed false and misleading documents, and filed a sham lawsuit to extract an improper settlement. See Turner v. Trans Union, LLC No. 18-cv-80938, 2019 WL 3926251, at *5 (S.D. Fla., July 29, 2019), report and recommendation adopted 2019 WL 5102451. Unlike Turner, Plaintiff's noncompliant conduct hasn’t risen to the level of filing deceptive documents or trying to strongarm a settlement. The Court understands Defendant’s frustration in trying to defend this suit (and the others). The Court too is discouraged because its orders, deadlines, and procedural rules are not advisory. It is no party’s prerogative to ignore deadlines and directives as it sees fit. The Court is optimistic, however, that Plaintiffs new attorney will not repeat his predecessor’s errors. Accordingly, it is now ORDERED: Defendant Redlands Christian Migrant Association, Inc.’s Motion to Dismiss with Prejudice the Amended Complaint (Doc. 38) is DENIED. DONE and ORDERED in Fort Myers, Florida this June 4, 2021.
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
Copies: All Parties of Record
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