KENNY v. SEMINOLE WIND RESTAURANT OF BAINBRIDGE LLC et al

Filing 13

ORDER granting 11 Motion to Set Aside Default. Ordered by U.S. District Judge HUGH LAWSON on 8/25/2014. (nbp)

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

WILLIAM KENNY, individually and
on behalf of others similarly
situated,
Plaintiff,

Civil Action No. 7:14-CV-97 (HL)

v.
SEMINOLE WIND RESTAURANT OF
BAINBRIDGE, LLC, SEMINOLE WIND
RESTAURANT OF THOMASVILLE,
LLC,
SEMINOLE
WIND
RESTAURANT OF CAIRO, LLC, and
THOMAS BRYANT,
Defendants.

ORDER
Before the Court is Defendants’ Motion to Set Aside Entry of Default (Doc.
11) pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 60(b). The motion is granted.
Rule 55(c) permits courts to “set aside an entry of default for good cause,” and
“defaults are not favored in federal court [because] trials on the merits are the
preferred method for resolving disputes.” Ritts v. Dealers Alliance Credit Corp.,
989 F. Supp. 1475, 1480 (N.D. Ga. 1997).
Defendants have shown good cause for setting aside entry of default.
Following a stipulation between the parties, Defendants had through July 28,
2014 in which to file a responsive pleading to the Complaint. On July 28,

Defendants’ attorney attempted to file a motion to dismiss the Complaint. Based
on the response generated by CM/ECF, the attorney believed that she had
successfully filed the motion to dismiss, although in actuality the filing was not
completed. Defendants moved to set aside entry of default two days after the
clerk’s entry of default upon Plaintiff’s motion. The Court finds that Defendants’
failure to file a pleading in response to the Complaint was not willful and that
setting aside entry of default will not prejudice Plaintiff.

SO ORDERED, this the 25th day of August, 2014.

s/ Hugh Lawson_______________
HUGH LAWSON, SENIOR JUDGE

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