Opinion
Civil Action No. 13-cv-01508-BNB
06-13-2013
DONALD P. MEYERS, Plaintiff, v. PFIZER INC., and IAN READ, CEO, Defendants.
ORDER DIRECTING PLAINTIFF TO FILE
AN AMENDED COMPLAINT
Plaintiff, Donald P. Meyers, currently resides in Montrose, Colorado. Plaintiff, acting pro se, initiated this action by filing a Complaint. The Court must construe the Complaint liberally because Plaintiff is not represented by an attorney. See Haines v. Kerner, 404 U.S. 519, 520-21 (1972); Hall v. Bellmon, 935 F.2d 1106, 1110 (10th Cir. 1991). The Court, however, should not act as a pro se litigant's advocate. See Hall, 935 F.2d at 1110. For the reasons stated below, Plaintiff will be ordered to file an Amended Complaint.
The Court finds that the Complaint does not comply with the pleading requirements of Rule 8 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The twin purposes of a complaint are to give the opposing parties fair notice of the basis for the claims against them so that they may respond and to allow the court to conclude that the allegations, if proven, show that the plaintiff is entitled to relief. See Monument Builders of Greater Kansas City, Inc. v. American Cemetery Ass'n of Kansas, 891 F.2d 1473, 1480 (10th Cir. 1989). The requirements of Fed. R. Civ. P. 8 are designed to meet these purposes. See TV Communications Network, Inc. v. ESPN, Inc., 767 F. Supp. 1062, 1069 (D. Colo. 1991), aff'd, 964 F.2d 1022 (10th Cir. 1992).
Specifically, Rule 8(a) provides that a complaint "must contain: (1) a short and plain statement of the grounds for the court's jurisdiction, . . . ." Taken together, Rules 8(a) and (d)(1) underscore the emphasis placed on clarity and brevity by the federal pleading rules. Plaintiff fails to state what jurisdiction he is asserting for the basis of his claims; he left the jurisdiction section of the complaint form blank. The Court, therefore, will direct Plaintiff to file an Amended Complaint that complies with the pleading requirements of Rule 8. Accordingly, it is
ORDERED that Plaintiff file an Amended Complaint as instructed above, within thirty days from the date of this Order. It is
FURTHER ORDERED that Plaintiff shall obtain the proper Court-approved form, along with the applicable instructions, at www.cod.uscourts.gov for use in filing the Amended Complaint. It is
FURTHER ORDERED that if Plaintiff fails to properly amend the Complaint within thirty days from the date of this Order, the Complaint and action shall be subject to dismissal without further notice.
DATED June 13, 2013, at Denver, Colorado.
BY THE COURT:
Boyd N. Boland
United States Magistrate Judge