Opinion
05 Civ. 2009 (JSR) (DFE).
December 7, 2005
Gary Gibbons, Otisville, NY, Michael R. Holden, Esq., Assistant U.S. Attorney, New York, NY, Pro se Office, Hon. Jed S. Rakoff.
MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
I have reviewed Mr. Gibbons's 18-page Response to my Memorandum and Order dated November 18, 2005.
At page 12, he "requests that the court reverse its recent ruling and appoint counsel to the Plaintiff." I have reconsidered my previous denials, but I adhere to them. On the other hand, if the Government does not move for summary judgment, or if such a motion is denied, then — at that point — Mr. Gibbons may renew his request for appointment of a volunteer attorney to represent him at the non-jury trial. That request should be made to Judge Rakoff (unless both parties consent that any trial should be held before me).
Meanwhile, I sincerely urge Mr. Gibbons to spend his time and energy on the discovery process. My prior order extended, by two months, each of the deadlines set forth in my July 21 Scheduling Order. Therefore, all fact discovery must be commenced in time to be completed by January 30, 2006. If Mr. Gibbons wishes to serve AUSA Holden with written sets of interrogatories, he should serve them no later than December 27, because Rule 33 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure provides 30 days to the defense to serve answers (and objections, if any).
At page 7, Mr. Gibbons complains about the end of my November 18 order, which said:
. . . [W]ith two letters dated October 5 but postmarked October 14, Mr. Gibbons did send the Pro Se Office copies of (a) Plaintiff's Response to Defendant's First Set of Interrogatories and Request for Documents and (b) Plaintiff's Addendum to Fact Discovery. The Pro Se Office forwarded these to me; they will not be docketed, but I will keep them in my chambers file (AUSA Holden has confirmed that he received the originals).
Mr. Gibbons writes that "he feels that these documents should be docketed and filed appropriately." It is generally not appropriate to docket discovery documents, or to file them with the Clerk of the Court. Instead, the parties keep their copies in their own possession; they send me selected portions only if it is necessary for me to review them to rule on a discovery dispute. I keep such documents in my chambers file until a final judgment is entered in the case.