Luttrell v. 2 Management of South Dakota et al

Filing 50

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER Plaintiffs motion for default judgment against Defendant 2 Management Stone Idol Ranch, LLC is DENIED without prejudice. (Doc. No. 48.) Signed by District Judge Audrey G. Fleissig on 1/7/15. (JWJ)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
EASTERN DIVISION

TRACY LUTTRELL,

)
)
Plaintiff,
)
)
vs.
)
)
2 MANAGEMENT OF SOUTH DAKOTA, )
INC., KENNETH PETERSON, and
)
2 MANAGEMENT STONE IDOL
)
RANCH, LLC,
)
)
Defendants.
)

Case No. 4:13CV02586 AGF

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
This employment discrimination action is before the Court on Plaintiff’s= motion for
default judgment against one of the three named Defendants, 2 Management Stone Idol
Ranch, LLC. Plaintiff brought this action seeking damages under Title VII, the Fair
Labor Standards Act, the Missouri Human Rights Act, and Missouri common law for
wrongful discharge. She alleges that Defendant Kenneth Peterson violated her rights
when he acted on behalf of one or the other of the two entities named as Defendants: 2
Management of South Dakota, Inc. (“South Dakota”), and 2 Management Stone Idol
Ranch, LLC. (“Stone Idol Range”) Peterson and South Dakota filed timely answers but
Stone Idol Ranch did not and on January 5, 2015, a Clerk’s Entry of default was entered as
to Stone Idol Ranch.
Plaintiff now seeks default judgment against Stone Idol Ranch in the amount of
approximately $400,000 in compensatory damages, and punitive damages in the amount of
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$3,900,000. The Court will deny without prejudice this motion for default judgment to
avoid the possibility of inconsistent results in this case. See Pfanenstiel Architects, Inc. v.
Chouteau Petroleum Co., 978 F.2d 430, 433 (8th Cir.1992) (“[w]hen there are multiple
defendants who may be jointly and severally liable for damages alleged by plaintiff, and
some but less than all of those defendants default, the better practice is for the district court
to stay its determination of damages against the defaulters until plaintiff's claim against the
nondefaulters is resolved.”); Angelo Iafrate Const., LLC v. Potashnick Const., Inc., 370
F.3d 715, 722 (8th Cir. 2004) (“When co-defendants are similarly situated, inconsistent
judgments will result if one defendant defends and prevails on the merits and the other
suffers a default judgment.”); Edwards v. Dwyer, 1:06-CV-1 CAS, 2008 WL 222514, at
*1-2 (E.D. Mo. Jan. 25, 2008) (denying motion for default judgment without prejudice as
to one defendant in a multiple-defendant case, where the claims against similarly-situated
non-defaulting defendants were not yet resolved).
Accordingly,
Plaintiff’s motion for default judgment against Defendant 2 Management Stone Idol
Ranch, LLC is DENIED without prejudice. (Doc. No. 48.)

AUDREY G. FLEISSIG
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
Dated this 7th day of January, 2015.

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