Opinion
4:22-cv-01877 4:22-cv-01441 4:22- cv-03458 4:22- cv-04016
09-13-2023
The Johns Law Firm, LLC, Plaintiff, v. Angela Pawlik, Defendant.
MEMORANDUM AND RECOMMENDATION
Yvonne Y. Ho United States Magistrate Judge
On this date, the Court held a hearing to address Defendant Angela Pawlik's motion for partial summary judgment, Dkt. 31, which motion was later amended (and thus mooted) pursuant to the Court's request, Dkt. 37 (order); Dkt. 42 (amended motion for partial summary judgment). As stated on the record, Defendant's arguments were framed as requests for relief on a declaratory judgment counterclaim. But because the Court has now dismissed Defendant's counterclaims, the relief she seeks is moot. See Dkt. 51 (adopting memorandum and recommendation to dismiss Defendant's counterclaims).
On the other hand, some of Defendant's contentions challenge the merits of Plaintiff The Johns Law Firm, LLC's live claim for breach of contract. The deadline for dispositive motions is approaching quickly, see Dkt. 12 (setting September 22, 2023 deadline for motions), and the parties have indicated their intent to file yet more motions for summary judgment. Thus, the better and more efficient course is to permit Defendant to refile a single, complete motion for summary judgment that addresses all the evidence acquired during discovery and all issues that Defendant wishes to raise. Defendant's motion and amended motion for partial summary judgment should therefore be denied with prejudice.
In fact, both parties attempted to proffer additional evidence and new arguments by submitting supplements to their prior briefing long after the briefing on the motion for partial summary judgment had closed. See Dkt. 53, 54. Those documents, filed without leave of Court, are hereby stricken from the record.
Order and Recommendation
For the foregoing reasons, it is hereby ORDERED that Plaintiff The Johns Law Firm LLC's Supplemental Response to Motion for Partial Summary Judgment (Dkt. 53) and Defendant Angela Pawlik's Supplemental Brief in Support of Summary Judgment (Dkt. 54) are STRICKEN FROM THE RECORD as filed without leave of Court.
It is further RECOMMENDED Defendant's motion for partial summary judgment (Dkt. 31) be DENIED AS MOOT and her amended motion for partial summary judgment (Dkt. 42) be DENIED without prejudice to refiling.
The parties have fourteen days from service of this Report and Recommendation to file written objections. 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1); Fed. R. Civ. P. 72(b). Failure to file timely objections will preclude appellate review of factual findings and legal conclusions, except for plain error. Ortiz v. City of San Antonio Fire Dep't , 806 F.3d 822, 825 (5th Cir. 2015).