Kipp v. Royal & Sun Alliance Personal Insurance Company

209 F. Supp. 2d 962, 2002 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13357, 2002 WL 1603209

• Court: District Court, E.D. Wisconsin
• Decided: July 17, 2002
• Docket: 02-C-0031
• Status: Published

Opinion

ORDER

RANDA, District Judge.

Transmotion, LLC (“Transmotion”), one of the many defendants in this product liability action, is a limited liability company (“LLC”) organized under the laws of the State of Wisconsin. In response to the plaintiffs Amended Complaint, Transmotion has filed an “Intended Answer” 1 signed by Tim Sullivan, “Representative for Defendant.” It does-not appear that Mr. Sullivan is a licensed attorney.

It is well-established that “a corporation may appear in the federal courts only through licensed counsel.” Operating Engineers Local 139 Health Fund v. Raw-son Plumbing, Inc., 130 F.Supp.2d 1022, 1023 (E.D.Wis.2001) (citing Rowland v. Cal. Men’s Colony, Unit II Men’s Advisory Council, 506 U.S. 194, 201-02, 113 S.Ct. 716, 121 L.Ed.2d 656 (1993)); see also Donovan v. Road Rangers Country Junction, Inc., 736 F.2d 1004, 1005 (5th Cir. 1984), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 1217, 105 S.Ct. 1198, 84 L.Ed.2d 342 (1985). Similarly, a partnership may. only appear in court through counsel. Eagle Assocs. v. Bank of Montreal, 926 F.2d 1305, 1309-10 (2d Cir. 1991). In Wisconsin, as in other jurisdictions, an LLC is “a hybrid form of business organization that combines the corporate characteristics of limited liability for its owners with the ... taxation and operating flexibility of a partnership.” Joseph W. Boucher and Leonard S. Sosnowski, The Wisconsin Limited Liability Company, 66 WISCONSIN LAWYER 9 (December 1993). Accordingly, an LLC should be governed (on this issue, at least) by the same rule that applies to both corporations and partnerships. In other words, “whether the LLC [is] characterized as a corporation, a partnership, or a hybrid, it may only appear in court through counsel.” Collier v. Cobalt, LLC, 2002 WL 726640 (E.D.La.); see also In re ICLNDS Notes Acquisition, LLC, 259 B.R. 289, 293-94 (Bankr.N.D.Ohio 2001).

The appropriate response when an LLC’s pleading is not signed by counsel is to: (1) order the LLC to appear by counsel “within a reasonable time,” and (2) issue a warning that the failure to do so may result in entry of default and default judgment. Operating Engineers, 130 F.Supp.2d at 1024-25.

NOW THEREFORE, BASED ON THE FOREGOING, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED THAT:

1. Transmotion shall file an answer signed by counsel within twenty (20) days of the date below; and

2. Failure to comply with this order shall result in entry of default and entry of default judgment.

SO ORDERED.

1 . The "Intended Answer” only responds to selected paragraphs of the Amended Corn-plaint.