Ross v. Jenkins

CourtDistrict Court, D. Kansas
DecidedMarch 16, 2020
Docket2:17-cv-02547
StatusUnknown

This text of Ross v. Jenkins (Ross v. Jenkins) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Kansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Ross v. Jenkins, (D. Kan. 2020).

Opinion

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF KANSAS

KENDRA ROSS,

Plaintiff, Case No. 17-2547-DDC-TJJ v.

ROYALL JENKINS, et al.,

Defendants.

Plaintiff, Case No. 19-2091-DDC-TJJ v.

THE PROMISE KEEPERS, INC., et al.,

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER This matter is before the court on plaintiff Kendra Ross’s Motion for Default Judgment (Doc. 208) against defendants The Promise Keepers, Inc., The Promise Keepers 417, Inc., and The Promise Keepers 417 Inc. (collectively, “The Promise Keepers”)1 for $8,055,730.64. Defendants have not appeared in this matter, though various non-parties have filed responses to plaintiff’s Motion. See Docs. 210, 211, 215, 217, and 220. But, as those documents were filed by non-parties and non-attorneys, the court struck the filings from the record, Doc. 230, and the

1 The Complaint alleges that The Promise Keepers 417 Inc. is incorporated in Maryland. The Promise Keepers 417, Inc. is incorporated in Georgia. Because a comma is the only thing distinguishing one entity from the other, the court refers to The Promise Keepers 417 Inc. as Promise Keepers Maryland, and The Promise Keepers 417, Inc. as Promise Keepers Georgia. court thus does not consider the arguments advanced in Docs. 210, 211, 215, 217, or 220 here. Plaintiff has filed a Reply (Doc. 212). The court concludes that it cannot enter a default judgment against defendants based on the current record. This Order explains why, below. I. Background On September 15, 2017, plaintiff Kendra Ross filed a Complaint against Royall Jenkins,

The Value Creators, Inc. (f/k/a The United Nation of Islam, Inc.), The Value Creators LLC, and The Value Creators, Inc. Doc. 1. The Complaint asserts 16 federal and state law claims.2 The federal claims include violations of the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (“TVPRA”), 18 U.S.C. §§ 1589, 1590, and 1595, for human trafficking and forced labor; the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”), 29 U.S.C. §§ 201–219, for unpaid wages; and the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (“RICO”), 18 U.S.C. § 1961. Three groups of claims comprise the state law claims: (1) violations of human trafficking laws; (2) violations of minimum wage laws; and (3) violations of Kansas tort and quasi-contract law. Plaintiff asserted that defendants have violated Kansas, New York, New Jersey, and Ohio human trafficking laws.

Plaintiff also claimed that defendants have violated minimum wages laws for those same states. Finally, plaintiff alleged that defendants have violated Kansas laws for conversion, unjust enrichment, and both intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress. On May 23, 2018, the court entered default judgment against defendants Royall Jenkins, The Value Creators, Inc. f/k/a The United Nation of Islam, Inc., The Value Creators LLC, and The Value Creators, Inc (the “Judgment Debtors”). See Doc. 41. On February 15, 2019, the selfsame plaintiff filed a Complaint against The Promise Keepers seeking to void certain asset transfers between Judgment Debtors and The Promise

2 It appears the Complaint unintentionally omitted Count VIII. Doc. 24 at 23 n.20. The claims skip from Count VII directly to Count IX. Keepers. Compl., Ross v. The Promise Keepers, Inc., Case No. 19-2091 (D. Kan. Feb. 15, 2019), ECF No. 1. The court granted plaintiff’s Motion for Temporary Restraining Order. TRO, Ross v. The Promise Keepers, Inc., Case No. 19-2091 (D. Kan. Feb. 15, 2019), ECF No. 8. Later, the court granted plaintiff’s request for a preliminary injunction. Prelim. Inj. Order, Ross v. The Promise Keepers, Inc., Case No. 19-2091 (D. Kan. Mar. 7, 2019), ECF No. 34. Plaintiff

amended her Complaint on March 25, 2019. Am. Compl., Ross v. The Promise Keepers, Inc., Case No. 19-2091 (D. Kan. Mar. 25, 2019), ECF No. 45. Plaintiff served The Promise Keepers on March 27, 2019. Return of Service, Ross v. The Promise Keepers, Inc., Case No. 19-2091 (D. Kan. Apr. 4, 2019), ECF No. 60; Return of Service, Ross v. The Promise Keepers, Inc., Case No. 19-2091 (D. Kan. Apr. 4, 2019), ECF No. 61; Return of Service, Ross v. The Promise Keepers, Inc., Case No. 19-2091 (D. Kan. Apr. 4, 2019), ECF No. 62. On April 23, 2019, plaintiff filed an Application for Clerk’s Entry of Default against The Promise Keepers. Doc. 194. On May 1, 2019, the Clerk entered default against The Promise Keepers under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 55(a). Clerk’s Entry of Default, Ross v. The Promise Keepers, Inc., Case No. 19-2091

(D. Kan. May 1, 2019), ECF No.68. Plaintiff now asks the court to enter a default judgment against The Promise Keepers under Rule 55(b)(2), awarding her damages, injunctive relief, and attorneys’ fees and costs. II. Legal Standard Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 55 provides a two-step process for securing a default judgment. First, Rule 55(a) allows the Clerk to enter a default against a party who “has failed to plead or otherwise defend” a lawsuit. Second, after the Clerk enters his default, plaintiff may request the Clerk to enter judgment if the amount sought is “a sum certain or a sum that can be made certain by computation.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 55(b)(1). When considering a motion for default judgment, the court may hold a hearing if “it needs to (A) conduct an accounting; (B) determine the amount of damages; (C) establish the truth of any allegation by evidence; or (D) investigate any other matter.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 55(b)(2). “Once the default is established, defendant has no further standing to contest the factual allegations of plaintiff’s claim for relief.” Mathiason v. Aquinas Home Health Care, Inc., 187 F.

Supp. 3d 1269, 1274 (D. Kan. 2016) (citations and internal quotation marks omitted). The court accepts as true all well-pleaded factual allegations in the Complaint. Id. This does not extend, however, to allegations about the amount of damages. Id. But, even after default, “‘it remains for the court to consider whether the unchallenged facts constitute a legitimate cause of action, since a party in default does not admit mere conclusions of law.’” Bixler v. Foster, 596 F.3d 751, 762 (10th Cir. 2010) (quoting 10A Charles A. Wright et al., Federal Practice and Procedure § 2688, at 63 (3d ed. 1998)). When deciding whether to enter a default judgment, a district court enjoys broad discretion. Mathiason, 187 F. Supp. 3d at 1274.

A default judgment also does not establish the amount of damages. Id. at 1274–75. Instead, “[p]laintiff must establish that the amount requested is reasonable under the circumstances.” Id. at 1275 (citing DeMarsh v. Tornado Innovations, LP, No. 08-2588-JWL, 2009 WL 3720180, at *2 (D. Kan. Nov. 4, 2009)). A court may award damages “‘only if the record adequately reflects the basis for [the] award via a hearing or a demonstration by detailed affidavits establishing the necessary facts.’” DeMarsh, 2009 WL 3720180, at *2 (quoting Adolph Coors Co. v.

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Ross v. Jenkins, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ross-v-jenkins-ksd-2020.