Bashore v. Performance Plumbing of Southwest Florida, Inc. et al

Filing 22

ORDER granting 21 Defendant Performance Plumbing of Southwest Florida, Inc.'s Unopposed Motion for Enlargement of Time to Obtain Counsel. Defendant Performance Plumbing of Southwest Florida, Inc. shall have up to and including 10/9/2014 during which to secure counsel, who should file a Notice of Appearance by that date. The Court will take no further action on 20 Order to Show Cause. Signed by Magistrate Judge Carol Mirando on 10/1/2014.(ALB)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF FLORIDA
FORT MYERS DIVISION
JOSHUA BASHORE, on his own
behalf and others similarly situated
Plaintiff,
v.

Case No: 2:14-cv-296-FtM-29CM

PERFORMANCE PLUMBING OF
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA, INC.,
LARRY LANGLEY and RANDAL
LANGLEY,
Defendants.
ORDER
Before the Court is Defendant Performance Plumbing of Southwest Florida,
Inc.’s Unopposed Motion for Enlargement of Time to Obtain Counsel (Doc. 21), filed
on September 29, 2014.

The motion was filed by Larry Langley, President of

Performance Plumbing of Southwest Florida, Inc. (“Performance”), who is also named
as a Defendant in his individual capacity in this matter.1 Performance requests an
extension of the time during which to secure counsel, up to and including October 9,
2014.

Doc. 21 at 1.

The motion contains a certificate pursuant to Local Rule

3.01(g), stating that counsel for Plaintiff does not oppose the requested extension.

1

Ordinarily, a corporation may not be represented by a person who is not an attorney.
The Court recognizes, however, that because the Order to Show Cause (Doc. 20), entered on
September 26, 2014, required a response before the expiration of the time period during
which the parties have now agreed that Mr. Langley may obtain counsel for Performance,
Mr. Langley was faced with a choice to either file a pro se response to the Order to Show
Cause on behalf of Performance, or not file a response at all and risk default judgment.
Accordingly, the Court will not strike the motion.

On September 26, 2014, the Court entered an Order to Show Cause requiring
Performance to show cause in writing, through counsel, on or before October 6, 2014
why it failed to secure counsel within the time permitted by the Court’s prior Order.

See Doc. 12. The instant motion states that Performance did not receive a copy of
the Court’s prior Order requiring it to secure counsel on or before September 5, 2014
and just became aware of the Order and its deadlines, 2 but that Performance is
diligently seeking to obtain counsel.

Thus, the Court will construe the instant

motion as a response to the Order to Show Cause. Moreover, although the Order to
Show Cause directed that a response be filed through counsel, because Performance
represents that it was not aware of the Court’s Order requiring it to secure counsel
by September 5, 2014, and further because Plaintiff has assented to the extension,
the Court will accept the motion as filed and grant the requested extension. The
Court also will not take any further action on the Order to Show Cause.
Performance is again cautioned that failure to obtain counsel within the time
permitted by this Order will result in the Court recommending that default judgment
be entered against Performance Plumbing of Southwest Florida, Inc.

2

The Court notes that the Order requiring Performance to secure counsel directed
that copies be sent to “counsel of record” and “unrepresented parties.” That Order also
struck a Response to Plaintiff’s Complaint filed by Larry Langley on behalf of himself,
individually, and on behalf of Performance. The Court ordered Larry Langley, individually,
to file a response to Plaintiff’s Complaint within thirty days. Mr. Langley filed a Response
the next day. See Doc. 15.

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ACCORDINGLY, it is hereby
ORDERED:
1.

Defendant

Performance

Plumbing

of

Southwest

Florida,

Inc.’s

Unopposed Motion for Enlargement of Time to Obtain Counsel (Doc. 21) is
GRANTED. Performance shall have up to and including October 9, 2014 during
which to secure counsel, who should file a Notice of Appearance by that date.
2.

The Court will take no further action on the Order to Show Cause (Doc.

20).
DONE and ORDERED in Fort Myers, Florida on this 1st day of October, 2014.

Copies:
Counsel of record
Performance Plumbing of Southwest Florida, Inc.,
c/o Larry Langley

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