Under The Circumstances, Dismissal For Failure To Satisfy Sanctions Order Was Unreasonable
WILLIAMS v. ADAMS (September 23, 2011,)
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Bruce Williams brought a § 1983 lawsuit against several police officers, claiming he was arrested without probable cause and assaulted. Williams brought the suit pro se and proceeded in forma pauperis. After he received a draft pretrial order from the defendants, Williams hired an attorney. For months, however, the attorney failed to respond to the defendants’ draft order. The defendants moved for dismissal and sanctions. After Williams' attorney responded to the order, the defendants withdrew their dismissal request but continued to press for sanctions. A magistrate judge, after two hearings, concluded that Williams and his attorney (who, by that time, had withdrawn from the case) were jointly liable for sanctions in excess of $9,000. Defendants rejected Williams' proposed payment plan and, after five months had passed, moved for dismissal. Judge Andersen (N.D. Ill.) granted the motion and dismissed the case. Williams appeals.
In their opinion, Seventh Circuit Judges Posner, Rovner, and Wood reversed and remanded. Sanctions imposed by a district court must be proportionate to the wrong. Here, Williams had little ability to pay but did have a lawsuit with enough merit that he was about to proceed to trial against the police officer defendants. He also complained to the Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission about his attorney's conduct. As a result, his attorney was suspended from practicing law for a short time and ordered to pay the sanctions, which he did. Under these circumstances, the dismissal of the complaint was an unreasonable sanction.
Michael Rigney practices in the law offices of GVC Ltd. in Chicago. In this blog, he reports on select