Reddy v. Nuance Communications, Inc. et al
Filing
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ORDER DENYING IN FORMA PAUPERIS STATUS ON APPEAL by Magistrate Judge Paul Singh Grewal denying 271 .(psglc1S, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 10/16/2015)
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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SAN JOSE DIVISION
United States District Court
For the Northern District of California
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KRISHNA REDDY,
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Plaintiff,
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v.
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NUANCE COMMUNICATIONS, INC., et al., )
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Defendants.
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Case No. 5:11-cv-05632-PSG
ORDER DENYING IN FORMA
PAUPERIS STATUS ON APPEAL
(Re: Docket No. 271)
Plaintiff Krishna Reddy requests leave to appeal nearly every order entered in this case in
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forma pauperis.1 Because the court finds that the appeal is not taken in good faith, the motion is
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DENIED.
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I.
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In late 2011, Reddy sued Defendants Nuance Communications, Inc., et al. and asserted ten
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claims: (1) employment discrimination, (2) wrongful termination in violation of public policy, (3)
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breach of contract, (4) breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing, (5) promissory
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estoppel, (6) fraud, deceit, and civil conspiracy, (7) intentional and negligent interference with
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contract and prospective economic advantage, (8) violation of California Labor Code sections 1050
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and 1052, (9) intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress, and (10) unconstitutional
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Case No. 5:11-cv-05632-PSG
ORDER DENYING IN FORMA PAUPERIS STATUS ON APPEAL
See Docket Nos. 271, 272.
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offshoring of confidential medical information of the citizens of the United States.2 After multiple
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rounds of motions to dismiss, summary judgment and appeal to the Ninth Circuit, only claims one,
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two and five, and claim nine’s allegations of negligent infliction of emotional distress remain, and
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Nuance is the sole defendant.3 Trial was set for September 8, 2015.4
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Fewer than two weeks before the start of trial, Reddy filed a 28 U.S.C. § 144 affidavit of
bias requesting the recusal of the undersigned, as well as a notice of intent to call both the
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undersigned and counsel for Nuance as witnesses at trial.5 When the court denied both requests
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and warned Reddy that trial would proceed as scheduled,6 Reddy requested that the trial be taken
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United States District Court
For the Northern District of California
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off calendar due to the bias of the undersigned and that the undersigned recuse himself.7 When the
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court denied this motion and repeated its warning that failure to try the case as scheduled would
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result in sanctions,8 Reddy petitioned the Ninth Circuit for a writ of mandamus and renewed her
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request to take the trial off calendar.9 Given Reddy’s demonstrated intent to avoid proceeding with
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trial as scheduled, the court then dismissed the case with prejudice for failure to prosecute10 and
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See Docket No. 1.
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See Docket No. 259 at 1-4, 10.
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See Docket No. 248 at 1.
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See Docket Nos. 261, 262.
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See Docket No. 263 at 4.
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See Docket No. 264.
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See Docket No. 266 at 1.
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See Docket No. 267.
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Case No. 5:11-cv-05632-PSG
ORDER DENYING IN FORMA PAUPERIS STATUS ON APPEAL
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See Docket No. 268 at 6.
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entered judgment.11 Reddy then moved to alter judgment,12 appealed virtually every substantive
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order issued in this case to the Ninth Circuit13 and moved for leave to appeal in forma pauperis.14
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II.
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The parties consented to the jurisdiction of the undersigned magistrate judge under 28
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U.S.C. § 636(c) and Fed. R. Civ. P. 72(a).15
Under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3), an “appeal may not be taken in forma pauperis if the trial
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court certifies in writing that it is not taken in good faith.” Courts in this district have determined
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that “not taken in good faith” means “frivolous.”16 If the appeal as a whole is frivolous, IFP status
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United States District Court
For the Northern District of California
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should not be granted.17
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III.
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Applying the standard as set forth above, Reddy’s motion is denied as follows.
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First, the Ninth Circuit declared that Reddy’s notice of appeal is ineffective due to her
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pending motion to alter judgment.18 Once this court has ruled on the pending motion, Reddy must
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See Docket No. 269.
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See Docket No. 270.
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See Docket No. 272.
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See Docket No. 271.
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See Docket Nos. 17, 121.
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See Morris v. Lewis, Case No. 4:10-cv-5640-CRB-PR, 2012 WL 1549535, at *3
(N.D. Cal. Apr. 30, 2012) (quoting Ellis v. United States, 356 U.S. 674, 674-75 (1958)) (finding an
appeal to be frivolous where it had no valid grounds on which it was based and equating
“frivolous” to mean not “taken in good faith”).
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See Hooker v. Am. Airlines, 302 F.3d 1091, 1092 (9th Cir. 2002) (holding that
28 U.S.C. § 1915(a) requires IFP status to be authorized for an appeal as a whole and not on a
piecemeal basis).
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See Krishna Reddy v. Nuance Communications, Inc., et al, Case No. 15-16994 (9th Cir. Oct. 13,
2015).
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Case No. 5:11-cv-05632-PSG
ORDER DENYING IN FORMA PAUPERIS STATUS ON APPEAL
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file an amended notice of appeal.19 The motion for leave to appeal in forma thus is moot, pending
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resolution of the motion to alter judgment.
Second, Reddy’s appeal is frivolous. Reddy has shown no desire to prosecute this case.
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After the Ninth Circuit rejected Reddy’s earlier appeal,20 she failed to take action for months until
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the court ordered her to show cause why the case should not be dismissed for failure to prosecute.21
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She then attempted to delay trial four times through assorted tactics,22 despite being on notice that
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failure to prosecute would result in sanctions.23 Further showing Reddy’s lack of good faith in
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pursuing appeal, her current appeal challenges an order that the Ninth Circuit previously
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United States District Court
For the Northern District of California
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affirmed.24 Additionally, her motion to alter judgment repeats the same worn attacks that the
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undersigned is biased against her, related to defense counsel and disqualified under Section 14425
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that the court already rejected.26 In short, Reddy has not presented any compelling arguments that
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suggest that she is entitled to relief of any kind, and based on the record in this case, the court sees
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no reason that she can do so on appeal.
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SO ORDERED.
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Dated: October 16, 2015
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_________________________________
PAUL S. GREWAL
United States Magistrate Judge
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See Docket No. 236.
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See Docket No. 237.
See Docket Nos. 261, 262, 264, 267.
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See id.
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See Docket No. 263 at 4; Docket No. 266 at 1.
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See Docket No. 272 at ¶ 17 (appealing Docket No. 228, order denying motion for appointment of
counsel and to proceed in forma pauperis); Docket No. 236 (order of the Ninth Circuit affirming
Docket No. 228).
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See Docket No. 270 at 5-6.
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See Docket Nos. 263, 266, 268.
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Case No. 5:11-cv-05632-PSG
ORDER DENYING IN FORMA PAUPERIS STATUS ON APPEAL
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