April Nuckles v. LoanCare, LLC, et al.

Summary

The United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia granted Plaintiff April Nuckles’s motion to extend the time to serve Defendant Nazanin Magnazi d/b/a BG Solutions. The court found no good cause under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(m), but exercised its discretion to grant a limited extension until July 13, 2026 because Plaintiff had attempted service, filed the motion before the deadline, and demonstrated no prejudice or disruption to the case schedule.

Holdings

1. Plaintiff did not establish good cause because the failure resulted from an address typographical error and counsel's failure to correct the error after receiving clear notice that service had failed.
2. A district court may, in its discretion, extend the time for service even when the plaintiff has not shown good cause, and a limited discretionary extension was warranted here.
3. When an action is removed before a defendant is served, 28 U.S.C. § 1448 and Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(m), operating with Rule 81(c), provide the plaintiff 90 days following removal to perfect service under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

Questions Presented

1. Whether Plaintiff demonstrated good cause under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(m) for failing to timely serve BG Solutions.
2. Whether the court should exercise its discretion to extend the service period even absent good cause.

Disposition

other