Meador v. Aye et al

Filing 67

ORDER DENYING 63 Motion to Appoint Counsel signed by Magistrate Judge Dennis L. Beck on 5/18/16. (Marrujo, C)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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GORDON D. MEADOR,

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Plaintiff,
v.

1:14-cv-00006-DAD-DLB (PC)
ORDER DENYING MOTION FOR
APPOINTMENT OF COUNSEL
(Document# 63)

K. AYE, et al.,
Defendant.

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On May 16, 2016, plaintiff filed a motion seeking the appointment of counsel. Plaintiff

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does not have a constitutional right to appointed counsel in this action, Rand v. Rowland, 113

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F.3d 1520, 1525 (9th Cir. 1997), and the court cannot require an attorney to represent plaintiff

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pursuant to 28 U.S.C. ' 1915(e)(1). Mallard v. United States District Court for the Southern

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District of Iowa, 490 U.S. 296, 298, 109 S.Ct. 1814, 1816 (1989). However, in certain

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exceptional circumstances the court may request the voluntary assistance of counsel pursuant to

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section 1915(e)(1). Rand, 113 F.3d at 1525.

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Without a reasonable method of securing and compensating counsel, the court will seek

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

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Aexceptional circumstances exist, the district court must evaluate both the likelihood of success of

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the merits [and] the ability of the [plaintiff] to articulate his claims pro se in light of the

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complexity of the legal issues involved.@ Id. (internal quotation marks and citations omitted).
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In the present case, the court has repeatedly sought to obtain volunteer counsel to

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represent Plaintiff. Unfortunately, efforts have proven unsuccessful. Without the availability of

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volunteer counsel willing to substitute into the case, the court cannot appoint counsel.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated:

/s/ Dennis

May 18, 2016

UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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L. Beck

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