Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation v. Miller et al

Filing 30

ORDER - IT IS HEREBY ORDERED directing Elite Homebuilders, Inc. to retain counsel on or before August 13, 2010. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that pursuant to LRCiv. 7.1.1 and Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 7.1, Elite Homebuilders, Inc. shall file a Corporate Disclosure Statement on or before August 13, 2010. Signed by Judge G Murray Snow on 7/28/10. (LAD)

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation v. Miller et al

Doc. 30

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WO NOT FOR PUBLICATION

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF ARIZONA

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, as) ) Receiver for Franklin Bank, SSB, ) ) Plaintiff, ) ) vs. ) Larry L. Miller and Jane Doe Miller,) husband and wife; Lance E. Keller and) Jane Doe Keller, husband and wife; Elite) H o m e b u i l d e r s , Inc., an Arizona) ) corporation, ) ) Defendants. )

No. CV-10-350-PHX-GMS

ORDER

On February 18, 2010, this matter was removed from Maricopa County Superior Court and assigned to Magistrate Judge David K. Duncan (Doc. 8). On March 10, 2010, this matter was reassigned to this Court (Doc. 20). A Scheduling Conference was held on June 4, 2010 and the Case Management Order was issued (Doc. 27). Upon further review of the docket, the Court notes that Defendant Elite Homebuilders, Inc. is not represented by counsel. Only licensed attorneys may represent a corporation in federal court. Rowland v. Cal. Men's Colony, Unit II Men's Advisory Counsel, 506 U.S. 194, 201-202 (1993) ("It has been the law for the better part of two centuries . . . that a corporation may appear in federal courts only through licensed counsel.") (citing Osborn v. President of Bank of U.S., 9 Wheat. 738, 829, 6 L.Ed. 204 (1824)); D-Beam Ltd. P'ship v. Roller Derby Skates, Inc., 366 F.3d 972,

Dockets.Justia.com

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973-74 (9th Cir. 2004) ("It is a longstanding rule that `corporations and other unincorporated associations must appear in court through an attorney.'") (alteration and citation omitted); In re Am. W. Airlines, 40 F.3d 1058, 1059 (9th Cir. 1994) ("Corporations and other unincorporated associations must appear in court through an attorney."); United States v. High Country Broad. Co., 3 F.3d 1244, 1245 (9th Cir. 1993) (holding that a corporation's president and sole shareholder could not make an "end run around" the counsel requirement by intervening pro se rather than retaining counsel to represent the corporation) (citing 28 U.S.C. 1654). A corporation may appear in federal court only through licensed counsel. See, e.g., Rowland, 506 U.S. at 201-202. Because Lance Keller is not a licensed attorney, he may not appear in this Court on behalf of Elite Homebuilders, Inc. See Nesselrode, LLC v. Measure, No. CV 07-49-M, 2007 WL 2398820, at *2 (D. Mont. Aug. 14, 2007) ("To the extent Nesselrode's motion requests that his corporation, Nesselrode, LLC, be permitted to proceed pro se, and that he be permitted to represent his corporation, the law does not support his request. Nesselrode is not an attorney, and . . . his corporation may appear in federal court only through licensed counsel. . . . [T]his well-settled rule . . . applies even if the individual seeking to represent the corporation is the president and sole shareholder of the corporation."). Therefore, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED directing Elite Homebuilders, Inc. to retain counsel on or before August 13, 2010. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that pursuant to LRCiv. 7.1.1 and Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 7.1, Elite Homebuilders, Inc. shall file a Corporate Disclosure Statement on or before August 13, 2010. DATED this 28th day of July, 2010.

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