Lawson v. Speight et al

Filing 17

ORDER granting 14 and granting 16 Motion for Reconsideration and vacating 13 Clerk's Judgment, 12 Order on Report and Recommendations. 9 REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS re 1 Complaint filed by Eric Lawson is hereby reopened and Plaintiff has 30 days from the date of this order in which to file his objections to the same. Signed by Chief Judge J. Randal Hall on 3/23/2018. (pts)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
AUGUSTA DIVISION

ERIC LAWSON,

*
*

Plaintiff,

*
*

V.

*

CV 117-118

*

KELLY SPEIGHT, DAVID CADDEN,
and BETH LOVE,

*
*
*

Defendant.

*

ORDER

Plaintiff initiated this claim after he was terminated from

his employment with Defendants.

Plaintiff alleges that he was

fired because of his race in violation of Title VII of the Civil

Rights

Act

of

1964,

42

U.S.C.

§

2000e,

et

seq.

Because

Plaintiff initiated this suit before receiving a right to sue

letter

from

(«EEOC")/

the

Employment

Magistrate

the

Equal

Judge

Opportunity
entered

a

Commission
Report

and

Recommendation recommending that Plaintiff's case be dismissed.
(Doc. 12.)

Plaintiff was supposed to receive a copy of the

Report and Recommendations and file any objections within twenty
days.

(Doc. 10.)

However, Plaintiff alleges that he never

received the Report and Recommendation because his P.O. Box was

mislabeled

by

a

Post

Office

employee.

(Doc.

16,

at

6.)

Plaintiff

now

moves

for

relief

under

Federal

Rule

of

Civil

Procedure 60(b).

Under Rule 60(b), a party may seek relief from judgment in
a

limited

number

of

circumstances

including:

(1)

mistake

neglect; (2) newly discovered evidence; (3) fraud; (4)

or

the

judgment is void; (5) the judgment has been satisfied; or (6)
any other reason that justifies relief.

Fed. R. Civ. P. 60(b).

Relief under Rule 60(b) is an extraordinary remedy which courts

do not grant as a matter of routine.

Sikes v. AT & T Co., 841

F. Supp. 1572, 1577 (S.D. Ga. 1993).

Through no fault of his

own. Plaintiff did not receive a copy of the Magistrate Judge's

Report

and

Recommendation.

Therefore,

Plaintiff

had

opportunity to have his objections heard by the Court.

no

Relief

is appropriate under such circumstances.

See Cavalliotis v.

Salomon,

1966)

357

appropriate

F.2d

where

157,

the

159

(2d

Cir.

defendant did

not

(relief

receive

notice

was

of

judgment).

Therefore, upon due consideration. Plaintiff's motion for
relief (docs. 14, 16) is GRANTED.
(doc. 12) is VACATED.

The Court's Adoption Order

Plaintiff shall have thirty days from the

entry of this Order to file any objections to the Magistrate
Judge's Report and Recommendation, a copy of which is attached
to this Order.

The Clerk is DIRECTED to REOPEN this case.

ORDER

ENTERED

at

Augusta,

Georgia,

this

ot

2018,

J. RiANtoi: HALL,/CrilEF JUDGE

UNIT^ STATES DISTRICT COURT
"SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA