Nancy S. Berent v. City of Surprise, et al.

District Court, D. Arizona·Decided December 5, 2025·No. 2:25-cv-02870·Unknown

Opinion

WO

Nancy S. Berent, No. CV-25-02870-PHX-MTL

Plaintiff, ORDER

v.

City of Surprise, et al.,

Defendants. From what the Court can gather, this case centers around vehicles parked in front of a fire hydrant. (Doc. 1 at 2, 4.) On August 8, 2025, Plaintiff Nancy Berent filed her Complaint, alleging that “Defendants conspired to fraudulently obscure the fire hydrant easement” on her property and that the City of Surprise “failed to cite, arrest, or remove vehicles and construction blocking access to the fire hydrant.” (Id.) Ms. Berent states that she reported the alleged fraud to authorities. (Id. ¶ 7.) The Complaint further alleges, without much explanation, events that occurred in other proceedings or in response to her reports to various authorities. (Id. ¶¶ 7-10.) For example, the Complaint asserts, “[a] Superior Court judge who had been removed from the case later signed an illegal judgment for legal fees, and multiple ripe motions have been ignored by clerks and judges in violation of Rule 91(e).” Ms. Berent names the following defendants: - City of Surprise and its Police Department - Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) - Farmers Insurance and its legal representatives - Debra Brockway, attorney - Jeff Fine, Clerk of Maricopa Superior Court - Vision Management and HOA board members - Unnamed judges and clerks of the Maricopa Superior Court and Court of Appeals (Id. ¶ 4.) The Complaint (Doc. 1) includes the following claims, exactly as shown: COUNT I – Violation of Civil Rights under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 COUNT II – Fraud Upon the Court and Extrinsic Fraud COUNT III – Judicial Misconduct and Due Process Violations COUNT IV – Disability Discrimination and Denial of Access to Justice COUNT V – Bivens Action for Federal Civil Rights Violations COUNT VI – Fraudulent Adverse Possession of Public Utility Easement COUNT VII – Clerk and Judicial Violations of Rule 60(b), Rule 73, and Rule 91(e) (Doc. 1 at 3.) Since filing her Complaint (Doc. 1), Ms. Berent has filed a litany of motions, notices, and supplements. (Docs. 2, 7-8, 10- 12, 16- 19, 22-32.) Most are incomprehensible or demonstrate a misunderstanding of the litigation process. For example, Ms. Berent has filed numerous notices which contain nothing but attached exhibits. (Docs. 26-27, 30-32.) The Court now addresses the pending motions in this case and screens Ms. Berent’s Complaint (Doc. 1) pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2). Ms. Berent’s application indicates that she has insufficient funds to prepay the filing fee for this action. Accordingly, the Court will grant the application (Doc. 6). In two substantially identical motions, Ms. Berent moves the Court to appoint a guardian ad litem or counsel. (Doc. 2, 24.) A. Guardian Ad Litem With respect to the appointment of a guardian ad litem, Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 17(c) provides that “[t]he court must appoint a guardian ad litem . . . to protect a minor or incompetent person who is unrepresented in an action.” A district court must make a competency determination where “a question clearly exist[s] whether [the plaintiff] was competent and could adequately protect himself.” United States v. 30.64 Acres of Land, 795 F.2d 796, 805 (9th Cir. 1986). “[A] court has broad discretion and need not appoint a guardian ad litem if it determines the person is or can be otherwise adequately protected.” Id. A finding of incompetence is not made lightly. A court’s finding of incompetency entails significant consequences because it deprives a party of the ability to control their own case. See 30.64 Acres of Land, 795 F.2d at 805 (explaining that “the appointment of a guardian ad litem is more than a mere formalism” because “[a] guardian ad litem is authorized to act on behalf of his ward and may make all appropriate decisions in the course of specific litigation.”). The Court finds that the record does not support the appointment of a guardian ad litem. Courts conduct competency determinations “when substantial evidence of incompetence is presented.” Allen v. Calderon, 408 F.3d 1150, 1153 (9th Cir. 2005); see also 30.64 Acres of Land, 795 F.2d at 805 (directing a district court to evaluate the plaintiff’s competency because “his claim [of incompetency] was made credible by official documentation”). For example, the Ninth Circuit held that a district court had to assess a plaintiff’s competence because the plaintiff submitted declarations stating he “is mentally ill and does not understand the court’s instructions,” along with “a letter from [a] psychiatrist . . . stat[ing] that [the plaintiff] is under his care, diagnosed with Chronic Undifferentiated Schizophrenia, and is taking two psychotropic medications.” Allen, 408 F.3d 1150, 1152 (9th Cir. 2005). Such evidence is lacking here. In her motions, Ms. Berent states that she is legally blind, cognitively impaired, and has limited mobility. (Docs. 2 at 1; 24 at 2.) Without explaining more about how her physical limitations affect Ms. Berent’s ability to proceed beyond the stress she feels because of the litigation process, only cognitive impairment would affect her ability to comprehend the proceedings before her. Ms. Berent provides no detail concerning what cognitive impairment she suffers from or how it would affect her competency as a litigant. The record does not supply enough for the Court to conclude that Ms. Berent is incompetent, so the Court will not appoint a guardian ad litem.1 B. Counsel Ms. Berent also moves the Court to appoint counsel. (Docs. 2, 24.) There is no constitutional right to the appointment of counsel in a civil case. See Ivey v. Bd. of Regents of the Univ. Of Alaska, 673 F.2d 266, 269 (9th Cir. 1982). But in proceedings in forma pauperis, the Court may request an attorney to represent any person unable to afford one. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(1). Appointment of counsel under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(1) is required only when “exceptional circumstances” are present. Terrell v. Brewer, 935 F.2d 1015, 1017 (9th Cir. 1991). To determine whether exceptional circumstances exist, the Court evaluates the likelihood of success on the merits as well as the ability of the plaintiff to articulate her claims pro se in light of the complexity of the legal issue involved. Id. “Neither of these factors is dispositive to articulate [a plaintiff’s] claims pro se in light of the complexity of the legal issue involved. Id. “Neither of these factors is dispositive and both must be viewed together before reaching a decision.” Id. (quoting Wilborn v. Escalderon, 789 F.2d 1328, 1331 (9th Cir. 1986)). The Court finds no exceptional circumstances here. In this instance, as set forth below, the Court does not find a likelihood of success on the merits of Ms. Berent’s claims. Moreover, Ms. Berent’s claims concern a fire hydrant easement on her property and Ms. Berent’s requests for authoriti

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