Morgan v. Bass

Filing 8

ORDER denying 7 Motion to Appoint Counsel. Ordered by Judge Hugh Lawson on 7/19/2011. (nbp)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
VALDOSTA DIVISION
MARCUS MORGAN,

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Plaintiff,
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v.
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STACY BASS,
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Defendant.
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______________________________________ :

Civil Action No.
7:11-cv-77 (HL)

ORDER
Before the Court is the Plaintiff’s motion for appointment of counsel (Doc. 7). For the
following reasons, the motion is denied.
The general rule is that there is no entitlement to appointed counsel in a civil rights
case. Poole v. Lambert, 819 F.2d 1025, 1028 (11th Cir. 1987). The district court should
exercise its discretion by appointing counsel only when there are “exceptional
circumstances, such as where the facts and legal issues are so novel or complex as to
require the assistance of a trained practitioner.” Dean v. Barber, 951 F.2d 1210, 1216 (11th
Cir. 1992) (citation omitted).
The Plaintiff’s 42 U.S.C. § 1983 case closed on July 7, 2011 after the Plaintiff failed
to follow the Court’s instruction to file an amended affidavit in support of his motion to
proceed in forma pauperis. There are no exceptional circumstances presented in the record
justifying the appointment of counsel. Accordingly, his motion to appoint counsel (Doc. 7)
is denied.
SO ORDERED, this the 19 th day of July, 2011.

s/Hugh Lawson
HUGH LAWSON, SENIOR JUDGE
lmc