Automattic Inc. et al v. Steiner

Filing 37

ORDER by Judge Hamilton granting 22 Motion for Default Judgment; adopting 31 Report and Recommendations as to Motion for Default Judgment. (pjhlc1, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 3/2/2015)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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AUTOMATTIC INC., et al.,
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Plaintiffs,

No. C 13-5413 PJH

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v.
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NICK STEINER,
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Defendant.
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ORDER ADOPTING MAGISTRATE
JUDGE'S REPORT AND
RECOMMENDATION; ORDER
GRANTING MOTION FOR DEFAULT
JUDGMENT

The court has reviewed Magistrate Judge Joseph C. Spero's report and

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recommendation regarding plaintiffs' motion for default judgment. The report and

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recommendation was filed on October 6, 2014. During the intervening time, plaintiffs

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Automattic, Inc. ("Automattic") and Oliver Hotham ("Hotham") have been attempting to

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serve defendant Nick Steiner (who resides in the United Kingdom) with a copy of the report

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and recommendation, but have to date been unsuccessful.

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Although defendant was not served with the report and recommendation, and thus

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did not file any objections, the court is satisfied by Judge Spero's detailed findings that the

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summons and complaint were properly served on defendant. There is no clear requirement

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in 28 U.S.C. § 636(b) that a report and recommendation be served on the opposing party.

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However, the court normally requests that the moving party do so, out of an abundance of

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caution. In this case, given that defendant was properly served (notwithstanding the

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difficulty of service in the U.K. under the Hague Convention) yet chose to default, the court

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will require no further expenditure of resources.

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The court finds the report correct, well-reasoned and thorough, and adopts it in

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every respect. Accordingly, plaintiffs' motion for default judgment is GRANTED. Judgment

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shall be entered for the plaintiffs, and the court awards plaintiffs damages in the amount of

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$960.00 for Hotham's work and time, $1,860.00 for time spent by Automattic's employees,

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and $22,264.00 for Automattic's attorney's fees, for a total of $25,084.00.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.

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Dated: March 2, 2015

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_________________________
PHYLLIS J. HAMILTON
United States District Judge