Opinion
12-cv-521-slc
08-27-2012
STEVEN J. RUSCH, LORIE A. RUSCH and RUSCH EQUIPMENT SALES, LLC, Plaintiffs, v. GARY McCARTAN, Defendant.
ORDER
On July 24, 2012, this case was transferred to this court from the Western District of Kentucky. When plaintiffs Steven Rusch and Lorie Rusch originally filed their proposed complaint in Kentucky, plaintiff Steven Rusch included a request for leave to proceed in forma pauperis. I will construe plaintiff Lorie Rusch to also request leave to proceed in forma pauperis in this case. To make a determination as to whether both plaintiffs may proceed without prepayment of the filing fee, I need to have plaintiff Lorie Rusch submit her own affidavit of indigency. Accordingly, plaintiff Lorie Rusch may have until September 19, 2012 to submit an affidavit of indigency. I am enclosing a blank affidavit of indigency form to plaintiff Lorie Rusch with this order.
There is another matter that requires attention. The case caption of the complaint in this case lists Rusch Equipment Sales, LLC as a plaintiff, but the complaint is only signed by plaintiffs Steven Rusch and Lorie Rusch, neither of whom appears to be a licensed attorney. It is well established that a corporation may appear in the federal courts only through licensed counsel. Rowland v. California Men's Colony, 506 U.S. 194, 201-02 (1993); Muzikowski v. Paramount Pictures Corp., 322 F.3d 918, 924 (7th Cir. 2003). This rationale "applies equally to all artificial entities," Rowland, 506 U.S. at 202, including limited liability companies or partnerships. E.g., United States v. Hagerman, No. 08-2670, slip op. at 4-5 (7th Cir. Sept. 26, 2008); Lattanzio v. COMTA, 481 F.3d 137, 140 (2d Cir. 2007); Kipp v. Royal & Sun Alliance Personal Ins. Co., 209 F. Supp. 2d 962, 963 (E.D. Wis. 2002). Thus, plaintiff's Rusch Equipment Sales, LLC complaint has not been properly filed because it is not signed by an attorney. Plaintiff Rusch Equipment Sales, LLC will need to be represented by a licensed attorney in order to proceed in this case.
ORDER
IT IS ORDERED that
1. A decision as to whether plaintiffs Steven Rusch and Lorie Rusch may proceed in forma pauperis in this action is STAYED. Plaintiff Lori Rusch may have until September 19, 2012, in which to submit an affidavit of indigency and return it to the court. If plaintiff fails to provide this requested financial information in a timely fashion, then the court will deny her request for leave to proceed in forma pauperis for failure to show that she is indigent.
2. Plaintiff Rusch Equipment Sales, LLC may have until September 19, 2012, in which to enter a notice of appearance of a lawyer who will represent this plaintiff in this case. If, by September 19, 2012, plaintiff Rusch Equipment Sales, LLC does not file a notice of appearance of counsel, then this plaintiff will be dismissed without prejudice on the court's own motion to plaintiff Rusch Equipment Sales, LLC's filing suit by counsel at some later date.
BY THE COURT:
STEPHEN L. CROCKER
Magistrate Judge
Steven J. Rusch, et al., Full name of plaintiff(s)
v.
Gary McMartin, Full name of defendant(s)
Case No. 12-cv-521-slc
(Provided by the clerk of court)
PETITION AND AFFIDAVIT TO PROCEED
WITHOUT PREPAYMENT OF FEES AND/OR COSTS
I, Lorie A. Rusch, declare that I am the plaintiff or petitioner in the above-named action. In support of my request to proceed in forma pauperis, I declare that I am unable to pay the fees and/or costs of these proceedings and that I am entitled to the relief sought in the complaint/petition/motion. I answer the following questions truthfully and under penalty of perjury (additional pages may be added, if necessary, to provide complete information):
I. Personal Information
1) Are you currently incarcerated? [ ] Yes [ ] No
If "No," go to question 2. Complete all sections.
If "Yes," answer questions (a), (b) & (c), skip to Section IV. Complete sections IV and V.
(a) State the place of your incarceration and provide your prisoner identification number:
____________
(place)
____________
(number)
(b) Are you employed at the institution? [ ] Yes [ ] No
(c) Do you receive any payment from the institution? [ ] Yes [ ] No
If you are a prisoner, attach a printout of your prison trust account statement showing transactions for the six-month period immediately preceding the filing of your complaint, motion, or petition and showing the balance of your release account. Prisoners who are permitted to file in forma pauperis must pay the full filing fee in installments.
Personal Information - continued
2) Are you employed? [ ] Yes [ ] No
3) Are you currently married? [ ] Yes [ ] No
If "Yes," is your spouse employed? [ ] Yes [ ] No
4) Do you have any legal dependents (children/adults) whom you are responsible for supporting?
[ ] Yes [ ] No
If "Yes," list them below:
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+ ¦First and Last Initials (For Minor ¦Relationship¦Age¦Amount of Support ¦ ¦Children Only) or Name ¦to You ¦ ¦Provided Per Month ¦ +------------------------------------+------------+---+-----------------------¦ ¦ ¦ ¦ ¦$ ¦ +------------------------------------+------------+---+-----------------------¦ ¦ ¦ ¦ ¦$ ¦ +------------------------------------+------------+---+-----------------------¦ ¦ ¦ ¦ ¦$ ¦ +-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+ II. Income - If you are married, your answers must include your spouse's income.
(When calculating income, you must include any salary, child support, public assistance, unemployment compensation, disability payments, life insurance payments, pensions, annuities, workers' compensation, stock dividends and interest, gifts, and inheritance, or other incoming monies.)
State your total monthly income? $ ____________
Provide the name of your employer(s): ____________
State your spouse's total monthly income? $ ____________
State the amount of money you have received from any other source in the last twelve months (e.g., rent payments, pension or insurance payments, gifts, inheritance, disability or workers' compensation payments). Please attach an additional sheet if necessary.
+------------------------+ ¦Source of income ¦Amount¦ +-----------------+------¦ ¦ ¦$ ¦ +-----------------+------¦ ¦ ¦$ ¦ +------------------------+ III. Expenses - If you are married and/or have dependents, your expenses should also include your household's expenses.
(When calculating household expenses, you may include groceries, clothing, medical costs, utilities which are not included in your rental payments, transportation, and insurance.)
1) Identify the following amounts that you pay per month:
[ ] Rent or [ ] Mortgage $ ____________
Car payment(s) $ ____________
Alimony and/or court-ordered child support $ ____________
Credit card payment(s) $ ____________
2) Do you have any other monthly expenses that you have not already identified?
[ ] Yes [ ] No
If "Yes," list them below:
+---------------+ ¦Expense ¦Amount¦ +--------+------¦ ¦ ¦$ ¦ +--------+------¦ ¦ ¦$ ¦ +--------+------¦ ¦ ¦$ ¦ +---------------+
3) What is the total amount of your monthly expenses? $ ____________
IV. Property - If you are married, your answers must include your spouse's property.
1) Do you own a car? [ ] Yes [ ] No If "Yes," list car(s) below:
+---------------------------------------------+ ¦Make and Model¦Year¦Approximate Current Value¦ +--------------+----+-------------------------¦ ¦ ¦ ¦$ ¦ +--------------+----+-------------------------¦ ¦ ¦ ¦$ ¦ +---------------------------------------------+
2) Do you own your residence(s)? [ ] Yes [ ] No
If "Yes," state the approximate value(s). $ ____________
What is the amount of equity (assessed value of residence minus outstanding mortgage balance) in the residence(s)? $ ____________
IV. Property - continued
3) Do you own any other valuable tangible property, including but not limited to, jewelry, artwork, or antiques? [ ] Yes [ ] No
If "Yes," identify the property and approximate value(s).
+---------------------------+ ¦Property¦Approximate Value ¦ +--------+------------------¦ ¦ ¦$ ¦ +--------+------------------¦ ¦ ¦$ ¦ +--------+------------------¦ ¦ ¦$ ¦ +---------------------------+
4) Do you have any cash or checking, savings, or other similar accounts? [ ] Yes [ ] No
If "Yes," state the total amount of such sums. $ ____________
5) Do you own any intangible property, including but not limited to real estate, stocks, bonds, trusts, or individual retirement accounts (e.g., IRA, 401 k)?
[ ] Yes [ ] No
If "Yes," state the nature of that property and approximate value(s). V. Other Circumstances - Describe any other financial circumstance(s) that you would like the court to consider when reviewing this petition.
________________________
Signature - Signed Under Penalty of Perjury