James v. Wilber et al

Filing 15

ORDER STRIKING UNSIGNED 13 MOTION signed by Magistrate Judge Dennis L. Beck on 1/21/2009. (Figueroa, O)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 RICKY W. JAMES, 12 13 vs. 14 J. WILBER, ET AL., 15 Defendants. Plaintiff, ORDER STRIKING UNSIGNED MOTION ( #13) 1:08-cv-00351-LJO-DLB (PC) IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

16 ________________________________/ 17 On January 13, 2009 , plaintiff filed an unsigned motion seeking the appointment of

18 counsel. The Court cannot consider unsigned filings. Local Rule 7-131; Fed. R. Civ. P. 11(a). 19 Accordingly, the unsigned motion is HEREBY ORDERED STRICKEN from the record. 20 Even if the Court were able to consider Plaintiff's motion, Plaintiff does not have a

21 constitutional right to appointed counsel in this action, Rand v. Rowland, 113 F.3d 1520, 1525 22 (9th Cir. 1997), and the court cannot require an attorney to represent plaintiff pursuant to 28 23 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(1). Mallard v. United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, 24 490 U.S. 296, 298, 109 S.Ct. 1814, 1816 (1989). However, in certain exceptional circumstances 25 the court may request the voluntary assistance of counsel pursuant to section 1915(e)(1). Rand, 26 113 F.3d at 1525. 27 Without a reasonable method of securing and compensating counsel, the court will seek

28 volunteer counsel only in the most serious and exceptional cases. In determining whether -1-

1 "exceptional circumstances exist, the district court must evaluate both the likelihood of success 2 of the merits [and] the ability of the [plaintiff] to articulate his claims pro se in light of the 3 complexity of the legal issues involved." Id. (internal quotation marks and citations omitted). 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 -2IT IS SO ORDERED. Dated: d274kd

January 21, 2009

/s/ Dennis L. Beck UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE