Seay v. Auto-Owners Insurance Company

Filing 4

ORDER offering pro-se plaintiff instructions on how to proceed with this case. Signed by Magistrate Judge Brian K. Epps on 11/2/15. (cmr)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
DUBLIN DIVISION
KIMBERLY FAE SEAY,
Plaintiff,
v.
AUTO-OWNERS INSURANCE
COMPANY,
Defendant.

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CV 315-092

ORDER
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This civil case was removed from the Superior Court of Telfair County, Georgia.
Because Plaintiff is proceeding pro se, the Court will provide her with some basic
instructions regarding the development and progression of this case.
IT IS ORDERED THAT Plaintiff shall serve upon the defendant, or upon its
attorney if appearance has been entered by counsel, a copy of every further pleading or other
document submitted to the Court. Plaintiff shall include with the papers to be filed a
certificate stating the date a true and correct copy of any document was mailed to the defendant or defendant’s counsel. Fed. R. Civ. P. 5; Loc. R. 5.1. Every pleading shall contain a
caption setting forth the name of the court, the title of the action, and the file number. Fed.
R. Civ. P. 10(a). Any paper received by a District Judge or Magistrate Judge that has not
been properly filed with the Clerk of Court or that fails to include a caption or certificate of
service will be returned.

It is Plaintiff’s duty to cooperate fully in any discovery that may be initiated by the
defendant. Upon being given at least five days notice of the scheduled deposition date,
Plaintiff shall appear and permit her deposition to be taken and shall answer, under oath and
solemn affirmation, any question that seeks information relevant to the subject matter of the
pending action. Failing to answer questions at the deposition or giving evasive or incomplete
responses to questions will not be tolerated and may subject Plaintiff to severe sanctions,
including dismissal of this case. The defendant shall ensure that Plaintiff’s deposition and
any other depositions in the case are taken within the 140-day discovery period allowed by
this Court’s Local Rules.1
While this action is pending, Plaintiff shall immediately inform this Court and
opposing counsel of any change of address. Failure to do so will result in dismissal of this
case.
Plaintiff must pursue this case; if Plaintiff does not press the case forward, the Court
may dismiss it for want of prosecution. Fed. R. Civ. P. 41; Loc. R. 41.1. If Plaintiff wishes
to obtain facts and information about the case from the defendant, Plaintiff must initiate
discovery. See generally Fed. R. Civ. P. 26 through 37 (containing the rules governing
discovery and providing for the basic methods of discovery).

Plaintiff should begin

discovery promptly and complete it within four months after the filing of the last answer of a
defendant named in the original complaint.

1

The Local Rules and commonly used Forms may be found on the Court’s website at
www.gasd.uscourts.gov/.
2

Interrogatories are a practical method of discovery for pro se litigants. See Fed. R.
Civ. P. 33. Interrogatories shall not contain more than twenty-five questions. Id. Plaintiff
must have the Court’s permission to propound more than one set of interrogatories to a party.
Discovery materials should not be filed routinely with the Clerk of Court; exceptions include
when the Court directs filing; when a party needs such materials in connection with a motion
or response, and then only to the extent necessary; and when needed for use at trial. If
Plaintiff wishes to file a motion to compel pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 37, she should first
contact the attorney(s) for the defendant and try to work out the problem; if Plaintiff
proceeds with the motion to compel, she should also file a statement certifying that she has
contacted opposing counsel in a good faith effort to resolve any dispute about discovery.
Loc. R. 26.5.
Plaintiff must maintain a set of records for the case. If papers are lost and new copies
are required, these may be obtained from the Clerk of the Court at the standard cost of fifty
cents ($.50) per page.
Under this Court’s Local Rules, a party opposing a motion to dismiss shall file and
serve her response to the motion within fourteen days of its service. “Failure to respond shall
indicate that there is no opposition to a motion.” Loc. R. 7.5. Therefore, if Plaintiff fails to
respond to a motion to dismiss, the Court will assume that there is no opposition to the
motion.
A response to a motion for summary judgment must be filed within twenty-one days
after service of the motion. Loc. R. 7.5, 56.1. A failure to respond shall indicate that there is
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no opposition to the motion. Loc. R. 7.5. Furthermore, each material fact set forth in a
defendant’s statement of material facts will be deemed admitted unless specifically
controverted by an opposition statement. Should a defendant file a motion for summary
judgment, Plaintiff is advised that she will have the burden of establishing the existence of a
genuine issue as to any material fact in this case. That burden cannot be carried by reliance
on the conclusory allegations contained within the complaint. Should a defendant’s motion
for summary judgment be supported by affidavit, Plaintiff must file counter-affidavits if she
desires to contest the defendant’s statement of the facts. Should Plaintiff fail to file opposing
affidavits setting forth specific facts showing that there is a genuine issue for trial, the
consequences are these: any factual assertions made in a defendant’s affidavits will be
accepted as true and summary judgment will be entered against Plaintiff pursuant to Fed. R.
Civ. P. 56.
SO ORDERED this 2nd day of November, 2015, at Augusta, Georgia.

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