Covington v. Skaggs et al

Filing 27

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER: IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Plaintiff's Motion for Appointment of Counsel (ECF No. 17 ) is DENIED, without prejudice. Signed by District Judge Ronnie L. White on 4/28/2021. (TMT)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
EASTERN DIVISION

KEVIN COVINGTON,
Plaintiff,
V.

BRADEN SKAGGS AND KAREN ROSE,
Defendants.

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Case No.

4:20CV755 RL W

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
This matter is before the Court on Plaintiffs Motion for Appointment of Counsel (ECF
No. 17).
There is no constitutional or statutory right to appointed counsel in a civil case. Nelson v.

Redfield Lithograph Printing, 728 F.2d 1003, 1004 (8th Cir. 1984). In determining whether to
appoint counsel, courts consider factors that include whether the plaintiff has presented nonfrivolous allegations supporting his prayer for relief, whether the plaintiff will substantially benefit
from the appointment of counsel, whether there is a need to further investigate and present the
facts related to the plaintiffs allegations, and whether the factual and legal issues presented by the
action are complex. See Battle v. Armantrout, 902 F.2d 701, 702 (8th Cir. 1990); Johnson v.

Williams, 788 F.2d 1319, 1322-23 (8th Cir. 1986); Nelson, 728 F.2d at 1005.

After considering Plaintiffs Motion for Appointment of Counsel, in view of the relevant
factors, the Court finds that the facts and legal issues presented in the instant case are not so
complex as to warrant the appointment of counsel at this time. In addition, the pleadings filed by
Kevin Covington, indicate that he is capable of presenting the facts and legal issues without the
assistance of counsel. Plaintiff's Motion for Appointment of Counsel will therefore be denied.
Accordingly,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Plaintiff's Motion for Appointment of Counsel (ECF
No. 17) is DENIED, without prejudice.

Dated this 28th day of April, 2021.

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RONNIE L. WHITE
UNITED STATES DISTRICT WDGE

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