Michelle Wynn Johnson v. Frank Bisignano

Summary

The United States District Court for the Southern District of Georgia dismissed Michelle Wynn Johnson’s action seeking judicial review of the Social Security Administration’s denial of Disability Insurance Benefits and Supplemental Security Income. The court dismissed the case under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(b) and the court’s local rule for failure to prosecute after Johnson failed to file her brief by the applicable deadline despite repeated warnings.

Holdings

1. The action was properly dismissed because Plaintiff repeatedly failed to comply with the court's instructions and failed to timely prosecute the case by not filing the required brief.
2. Plaintiff's earlier belated compliance with the magistrate-judge assignment order did not prevent a later dismissal after her continued failure to comply with court requirements and prosecute the case.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the action should be dismissed for failure to prosecute after Plaintiff failed to comply with court orders and failed to file the required brief by the applicable deadline.
2. Whether the court had authority to dismiss the action sua sponte under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(b), its inherent docket-management authority, and the applicable local rule.

Disposition

dismissed