CROWDER v. ALL STATES MOVING AND STORAGE LLC et al

Filing 16

ORDER granting 15 Motion for Default Judgment. Ordered by Judge Hugh Lawson on 4/19/2012. (nbp)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
VALDOSTA DIVISION
RENITA CROWDER,
Plaintiff,
Civil Action 7:12-CV-7 (HL)
v.
ALLSTATES MOVING AND STORAGE,
INC. and UNITED VAN LINES, L.L.C.,
Defendants.

ORDER
Before the Court is Defendants’ Motion for Default Judgment on
Defendants’ Counterclaim. (Doc. 15) For the reasons stated below, the Motion is
granted.
Plaintiff hired Defendants to move her belongings to Maine. (See
Complaint, Doc. 1-1.) There was some miscommunication about the delivery of
the belongings, and as a result, the furniture was not delivered to Plaintiff, but
was instead turned over to a storage company. (Id.) Plaintiff filed her Complaint
in this case on December 13, 2011 in the Magistrate Court of Lowndes County,
Georgia, seeking $5,000.00 from Defendants to pay the costs of the storage. The
case was removed by Defendant United Van Lines, L.L.C. on January 10, 2012.
(Doc. 1.) This Court has proper jurisdiction over this case on removal because
the claims are governed by 49 U.S.C. § 14704, which provides rights and

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remedies for persons injured by carriers or brokers in the context of commercial
disputes. See Thurson Motor Lines, Inc. v. Rand, Ltd., 460 U.S. 533, 534 (1983);
Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Ass’n v. Landstar System, Inc., 622 F.3d
1307, 1312 n. 5; Morris v. Florida Transformer, Inc., 455 F. Supp. 2d 1328, 1329
n. * (M.D. Ala. Oct. 5, 2006).
Defendants filed their answer on January 17, 2012, which contained a
counterclaim. This counterclaim asserted that Plaintiff breached the interstate
transportation contract that was executed by the parties. (Doc. 3, p. 7.) The
counterclaim further contends that Plaintiff is responsible for all costs associated
with the moving and storage of her personal belongings. (Id. at 10.) After Plaintiff
failed to respond to Defendants’ counterclaim, Defendants moved for Clerk’s
entry of default in accordance with Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 55(a), and the
Clerk’s office entered a default on Defendants’ counterclaim on March 13, 2012.
Defendants have now requested a default judgment in the amount of
$12,891.83. This sum is owed to Defendants under the terms of a Bill of Lading
contract (“BOL”) and a Storage in Transit agreement (“SIT”) executed between
the parties. A total of $5,123.43 is owed to Defendants under the BOL.
(Declaration of Sam Lomax, Doc. 15-2, p. 1.) A total of $7,768.40 is owed to
Defendants in SIT as of April 30, 2012. (Id. at 2.) Pre-judgment interest in the
amount of $1,422.59 is also sought by Defendants, calculated at 7% per annum
for the BOL and 18% per annum under the STI, totaling $485.39 and $937.20,
respectively.
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The Court has reviewed the counterclaim filed by Defendants, and finds
that the well-pleaded allegations in the complaint deem admitted by Plaintiff are
sufficient to establish Plaintiff’s liability and the amount of damages sought by
Defendants. Defendants submitted a copy of the BOL and also included the
Declaration of Mr. Sam Lomax, the Supervisor of United Van Lines, L.L.C. Credit
Department. This evidence is sufficient to convince the Court that the amount of
damages sought is appropriate in this case.
For good cause shown, the Court grants Defendants’ Motion for Default
Judgment on Defendants’ Counterclaim and awards Defendants judgment from
and against Plaintiff in the amount of $12,891.83. Defendants are also awarded
post-judgment fees accrued under the SIT agreement as well as court costs.
SO ORDERED, this 19th day of April, 2012.

s/Hugh Lawson
HUGH LAWSON, SENIOR JUDGE
ebr

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