JUSTICE, SR. v. LIEBEL et al

Filing 50

ENTRY - 49 Motion to Clarify this Court's Previous Order is denied. See entry for details. Signed by Judge Tanya Walton Pratt on 11/29/2017. (Copy mailed to Plaintiff) (MEJ)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF INDIANA
INDIANAPOLIS DIVISION
CHARLES E. JUSTISE, SR.,

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Plaintiff,
vs.
DAVID LIEBEL, MS. ROBERTS,
JOE SNIDER,
Defendants.
Entry

This action has been closed since June 1, 2016, when it was transferred to the
Northern District of Indiana. The transfer of this action left no issues remaining in the case for
this Court. Price v. Wyeth Holdings Corp., 505 F.3d 624, 629 (7th Cir. 2007)(“[A] ‘cause’ (that
is, lawsuit) cannot continue to exist once every Acause of action@ within it has been
dismissed.”). Moreover, it appears that a settlement has been reached in the transferred action.
See dkt. 49-2. To the extent the plaintiff wishes to file a new action, he may do so. However,
there is one and only one means by which to commence a civil action in federal court. That
means is through the filing of a complaint. In re Allied Signal Corp., 915 F.2d 190, 192 (6th
Cir. 1990) (“an action is commenced with the filing of a complaint rather than a motion”); 1
James Wm. Moore et al., MOORE'S FEDERAL PRACTICE § 3.02[1] (3d ed.2000) (“an
action is not commenced by . . . filing a motion with the court . . . .”).
According to Rule 3 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a civil action is
commenced upon the filing of a complaint with the court. If the plaintiff wishes to file a
lawsuit, he must file a complaint, and in doing so he shall be guided by the following: (a) the
complaint shall comply with the requirement of Rule 8(a)(2) of the Federal Rules of Civil

Procedure that pleadings contain “a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the
pleader is entitled to relief. . . .”; (b) the complaint shall comply with the requirement of Rule
10 that the allegations in a complaint be made in numbered paragraphs, each of which should
recite, as far as practicable, only a single set of circumstances; (c) the complaint must identify
what legal injury he claims to have suffered and what persons are responsible for each such
legal injury; and (d) the complaint shall contain a clear statement of the relief which is sought.
If the plaintiff takes that step (submitting a complaint) he contemporaneously must either pay
the $400.00 filing fee or demonstrate that he lacks the financial ability to do so.
Accordingly, the plaintiff’s motion to clarify this Court’s previous order, dkt. [49]
is denied.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
Date: 11/29/2017

Electronic distribution to counsel of record via CM/ECF and by U.S. mail to:
CHARLES E. JUSTISE, SR.
921730
INDIANA STATE PRISON
INDIANA STATE PRISON
Inmate Mail/Parcels
One Park Row
MICHIGAN CITY, IN 46360