Union Pacific Railroad Company v. South / Win Ltd.

Filing 18

ORDER granting ECF No. 16 Motion for Default Judgment : Plaintiff Union Pacific Railroad Company shall have ten (10) days after entry of this order to prepare an appropriate judgment against defendant South / Win Ltd. and submit the same for approval and signature. Signed by Judge Larry R. Hicks on 12/8/2017. (Copies have been distributed pursuant to the NEF - DRM)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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DISTRICT OF NEVADA

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***

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UNION PACIFIC RAILROAD COMPANY,

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Plaintiff,
Case No. 3:17-cv-0456-LRH-(VPC)

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v.
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ORDER
SOUTH / WIN LTD.,
Defendants.

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Before the court is plaintiff Union Pacific Railroad Company’s (“Union Pacific”) motion

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for default judgment. ECF No. 16.

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I.

Facts and Procedural History
Between 2014 and 2017, Union Pacific moved railcars for defendant South / Win Ltd.

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(“South”) and incurred tariff, demurrage, and freight charges on South’s behalf for which South

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was allegedly liable under certain agreements between the parties.
On July 31, 2017, Union Pacific filed a complaint against South alleging two causes of

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action: (1) unpaid demurrage charges; and (2) unpaid freight charges. ECF No. 1. On August 1,

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2017, Union Pacific filed an amended complaint. ECF No. 4. Defendant South did not file an

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answer to the complaint after being properly served. See ECF No. 7. Subsequently, Union Pacific

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obtained a clerk’s entry of default against defendant. ECF No. 15. Thereafter, Union Pacific filed

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the present motion for default judgment. ECF No. 16.

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II.

Discussion
Obtaining a default judgment is a two-step process governed by Rule 55 of the Federal

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Rules of Civil Procedure. Eitel v. McCool, 782 F.2d 1470, 1471 (9th Cir. 1986). First,

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Rule 55(a) provides, “[w]hen a party against whom a judgment for affirmative relief is sought

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has failed to plead or otherwise defend, and that failure is shown by affidavit or otherwise, the

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clerk must enter the party’s default.” FED. R. CIV. P. 55(a). Second, after the clerk of court enters

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default, a party must seek entry of default judgment from the court under Rule 55(b).

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FED. R. CIV. P. 55(b).

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Upon entry of a clerk’s default, the court takes the factual allegations in the non-

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defaulting party’s complaint as true. Nonetheless, while entry of default by the clerk is a

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prerequisite to an entry of default judgment, “a plaintiff who obtains an entry of default is not

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entitled to default judgment as a matter of right.” Warner Bros. Entm’t Inc. v. Caridi, 346 F.

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Supp. 2d 1068, 1071 (C.D. Cal. 2004) (citation omitted). Instead, whether a court will grant a

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default judgment is in the court’s discretion. Id. (citations omitted).

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The Ninth Circuit has identified several relevant factors in determining whether to grant

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default judgment including: (1) the possibility of prejudice to the plaintiff; (2) the merits of the

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plaintiff’s substantive claims; (3) the sufficiency of the complaint; (4) the sum of money at stake

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in the action; (5) the possibility of a dispute concerning material facts; (6) whether the default

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was due to the excusable neglect; and (7) the strong policy favoring decisions on the merits.

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Eitel, 782 F.2d at 1471-72.

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The court has reviewed the documents and pleadings on file in this matter and finds that

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the Eitel factors support entering a default judgment in this action. First, Union Pacific will be

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severely prejudiced if a default judgment is not entered because South has shown an

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unwillingness to appear. Second, Union Pacific’s claims are sufficiently pled and supports its

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requested relief of monetary damages. Third, the relief requested is directly related to the

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underlying demurrage and freight charges. Fourth, there is no excusable neglect for South’s

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failure to participate in this action. Finally, although public policy favors a resolution on the

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merits, the court finds that a default judgment is warranted in light of the other Eitel
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considerations and the fact that South’s unwillingness to participate in this action precludes

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resolution on the merits.

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IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that plaintiff’s motion for default judgment
(ECF No. 16) is GRANTED.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that plaintiff Union Pacific Railroad Company shall have

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ten (10) days after entry of this order to prepare an appropriate judgment against defendant

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South / Win Ltd. and submit the same for approval and signature.

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DATED this 8th day of December, 2017.

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LARRY R. HICKS
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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