Lawrence Arrington v. Rogers Cartage Co., Inc.; et al.

• Court: District Court, M.D. Alabama
• Decided: June 29, 2026
• Docket: 2:26-cv-00223
• Status: Unknown

Opinion

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE UNITED STATES FOR THE

MIDDLE DISTRICT OF ALABAMA, NORTHERN DIVISION

LAWRENCE ARRINGTON, ) ) Plaintiff, ) ) CIVIL ACTION NO. v. ) 2:26cv223-MHT ) (WO) ROGERS CARTAGE CO., INC.; ) et al., ) ) Defendants. )

ORDER Before the court is plaintiff’s notice of voluntary dismissal without prejudice as to defendant Centerline Drivers, LLC (Doc. 5), in which plaintiff, pursuant Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(a)(1)(A)(i), dismisses its claims against only one of the four defendants. Rule 41(a)(1)(A) allows a plaintiff to “dismiss an action” without court permission so long as no answer or motion for summary judgment has been filed. “Rule 41(a)(1)(A)(i) allows ‘only for the [voluntary] dismissal of an entire action,’ not individual claims within an action.” CMYK Enters., Inc. v. Advanced Print Techs., LLC, 154 F.4th 1329, 1332 (11th Cir. 2025) (quoting Rosell v. VMSB, LLC, 67 F.4th 1141, 1143 (11th Cir. 2023)). However, the Eleventh

Circuit Court of Appeals has recognized an “exception to this rule, allowing plaintiffs to voluntarily dismiss less than the entire action so long as they dismiss a defendant in its entirety (i.e., they dismiss

all of the claims brought against that defendant).” In re Esteva, 60 F.4th 664, 677 (11th Cir. 2023) (citing cases). No answer or motion for summary judgment has been

filed here, and plaintiff seeks to dismiss all claims against a particular defendant. Therefore, plaintiff’s notice of dismissal was effective in dismissing all claims against defendant Centerline Drivers, LLC,

without prejudice. Nevertheless, because this case will proceed more efficiently and with less chance of confusion if it

starts with an accurate complaint, the court will require the filing of an amended complaint. *** Accordingly, it is ORDERED that: (1) By July 13, 2026, plaintiff shall file an

amended complaint omitting the dismissed defendant and modifying the allegations and counts as necessary in light of the dismissal. (2) The clerk of court shall terminate defendant

Centerline Drivers, LLC as a party to this action in the court’s electronic filing system. DONE, this the 29th day of June, 2026. /s/ Myron H. Thompson UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE