(PS) Saturn Transport, Inc. v. State of California Employment Development Department Doc.

Case 2:07-cv-02447-LEW-DAD Document 4 Filed 11/15/2007 Page 1 of 2

8 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

9 FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

10 SATURN TRANSPORT, INC.,

11 Plaintiff, No. CIV S-07-2447 LEW DAD PS

12 vs.

13 STATE OF CALIFORNIA, et al., ORDER

14 Defendants.

15 /

16 Plaintiff Saturn Transport, Inc. has filed a complaint for negligence and wrongful

17 assessment of unemployment insurance and has paid the required filing fee of $350.00. Because

18 the plaintiff corporation purports to have filed this action “in pro per,” the proceeding has been

19 referred to the undersigned in accordance with Local Rule 72-302(c)(21) and 28 U.S.C.

20 § 636(b)(1).

21 In general, parties may plead and conduct their own cases personally. See 28

22 U.S.C. § 1654. However, “[a] corporation or other entity may appear only by an attorney.”

23 Local Rule 83-183(a). Unlicensed laypersons, including the owners of companies, officers of a

24 corporation, partners of a partnership, and members of an association may not represent their

25 entities “pro se.” Rowland v. California Men’s Colony, 506 U.S. 194, 201-02 (1993) (“It has

26 been the law for the better part of two centuries . . . that a corporation may appear in the federal

Dockets.Justia.com
 Case 2:07-cv-02447-LEW-DAD Document 4 Filed 11/15/2007 Page 2 of 2

1 courts only through licensed counsel. . . . [T]hat rule applies equally to all artificial entities.”);

2 United States v. High Country Broadcasting Co., Inc., 3 F.3d 1244, 1245 (9th Cir. 1993)

3 (affirming district court’s entry of default judgment against the corporation when the corporation

4 failed to retain counsel for the duration of the litigation and attempted to proceed through its

5 unlicensed president and sole shareholder).

6 IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that plaintiff Saturn Transport, Inc. shall appear

7 through counsel within fifteen days from the date of this order. Plaintiff is forewarned that

8 failure to make such an appearance will result in a recommendation that the assigned district

9 judge dismiss this action without prejudice to the filing of a new action with counsel.

10 DATED: November 14, 2007.

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