Glenn v. Trident Seafood Company

Opinion

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5 6 7 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 8 WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON AT SEATTLE 9 10 TRAVIS GLENN, CASE NO. C20-1583 MJP 11 Plaintiff, ORDER GRANTING PLAINTIFF’S MOTION TO APPOINT COUNSEL 12 v. 14 Defendant. 15 16 Pro se Plaintiff Travis Glenn moves for appointed counsel in this civil action. (Dkt. No. 17 7.) Having reviewed the Motion and the related record, the Court GRANTS the Motion. 18 In considering a motion to appoint counsel, the Court must evaluate both “the likelihood 19 of success on the merits [and] the ability of the [plaintiff] to articulate his claims pro se in light 20 of the complexity of the legal issues involved.” Wilborn v. Escalderon, 789 F.2d 1328, 1331 21 (9th Cir. 1986) (quoting Weygandt v. Look, 718 F.2d 952, 954 (9th Cir. 1983)). 22 In this case, the Court finds that counsel is appropriate at this stage of the proceeding 23 because Plaintiff’s allegations are significant and, if proven, would establish pervasive 24 harassment and discrimination. The Court also finds that the legal issues involved are complex 1 and that conducting discovery against an out-of-state former employer, that may be antagonistic, 2 and proving the elements of a Title VII action will require significant skill. The Court therefore 3 GRANTS Plaintiff’s motion and refers this matter to Pro Bono Panel to represent Plaintiff. After 4 that, the Court will issue an order appointing the attorney.

5 7 Dated December 7, 2020.

A 8 9 Marsha J. Pechman 10 United States Senior District Judge

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