Tsoi v. Episcopal Community Services of San Francisco

Filing 57

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE WHY CASE SHOULD NOT BE DISMISSED. Order to Show Cause Hearing set for 1/28/2016 01:30 PM. Signed by Judge Richard Seeborg on 12/20/15. (Attachments: # 1 Certificate/Proof of Service)(cl, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 12/21/2015)

1
2
3
4
5
6

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

7

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

8
9

POLLIANA W. TSOI,

Case No. 14-cv-02333-RS

Plaintiff,
10
v.

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE WHY CASE
SHOULD NOT BE DISMISSED

United States District Court
Northern District of California

11
12

EPISCOPAL COMMUNITY SERVICES
OF SAN FRANCISCO,

13

Defendant.

14
15

Plaintiff Polliana W. Tsoi filed this action in May of 2014. Her pleadings are handwritten

16

and difficult to decipher, but the gravamen of her complaint appears to be that she was harassed

17

and mistreated while living at a shelter operated by defendant Episcopal Community Services.

18

Some of the alleged harassment was from fellow residents that defendant purportedly failed to

19

control, and some came directly from defendants’ employees.

20

Defendant answered in June of 2014. Citing health and other problems, plaintiff sought

21

and was granted several continuances of the initial Case Management Conference. The CMC

22

eventually went forward in February of this year, and the parties were ordered to participate in a

23

settlement conference with a magistrate judge.

24

Plaintiff failed to attend the settlement conference. Although she filed a motion to be

25

“exempted” from the settlement conference that same day, in light of her failure to seek relief in

26

advance of her failure to appear, the magistrate judge issued an order to show cause. See Dkt. No.

27

42. Plaintiff then failed to attend the hearing on the magistrate judge’s order to show cause,

28

although she did communicate with the court through certain filings and telephone calls, as

1

described in the magistrate judge’s subsequent Report and Recommendation. See Dkt. No. 45.

2

Because plaintiff’s conduct made it impossible to move forward with a settlement conference,

3

however, the magistrate judge recommended that a further order to show cause be issued by the

4

undersigned.

5

That order to show cause issued in September of this year. While plaintiff thereafter filed

6

certain other motions, which were denied, she never directly responded to that order to show

7

cause, other than twice to seek continuance of the hearing. On the morning of the hearing, plaintiff

8

telephoned the court and advised that she would not attend.
On this record, while plaintiff has made some minimal efforts to stay in communication

10

with the court, her course of conduct demonstrates an unwillingness and/or inability to comply

11
United States District Court
Northern District of California

9

with court orders and rules such that the case has not moved forward and cannot be expected to.

12

Accordingly, plaintiff is ordered to appear in person at 1:30 p.m. on January 28, 2016 in

13

Courtroom 3, Seventeenth Floor of the court, 450 Golden Gate Avenue, San Francisco, and show

14

cause why the case should not be dismissed for her failure to comply with orders and rules and/or

15

for lack of prosecution. No continuances of the hearing will be granted. In the event plaintiff

16

fails to appear, this case may be dismissed without further notice.

17
18
19

IT IS SO ORDERED.

20
21
22
23

Dated: December 20, 2015
______________________________________
RICHARD SEEBORG
United States District Judge

24
25
26
27
ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE
CASE NO. 14-cv-02333-RS

28
2