Stepan Sereda v. Manuela Ayala, et al.

Opinion

STEPAN SEREDA, Case No. 2:25-cv-2583-DC-JDP (PS)

Plaintiff,

v. ORDER

MANUELA AYALA, et al.,

Defendants. Plaintiff has filed a motion for appointment of counsel. ECF No. 20. Generally, pro se litigants do not have a right to counsel in civil actions. Palmer v. Valdez, 560 F.3d 965, 970 (9th Cir. 2009). However, the court can request an attorney represent an indigent civil litigant under certain exceptional circumstances. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(1) (“The court may request an attorney to represent any person unable to afford counsel”); see Agyeman v. Corrections Corp. of America, 390 F.3d 1101, 1103 (9th Cir 2004). In determining whether such circumstances exist, the court must evaluate both the plaintiff’s likelihood of “success on the merits and . . . plaintiff’s ability to articulate his claims in light of the complexity of the legal issues involved.” Agyeman, 390 F.3d at 1103 (internal quotation omitted). The court does not find that plaintiff’s likelihood of success, the complexity of the issues, or the degree of plaintiff’s ability to articulate his claims amount to exceptional circumstances warranting the appointment of counsel. Accordingly, plaintiff’s motion is denied. ] Plaintiff has also filed a motion asking for a sixty-day extension of time to respond to defendants’ discovery requests. ECF No. 21. None of the defendants have opposed plaintiff’ s motion. Accordingly, the motion will be granted. Accordingly, it is hereby ORDERED that: 1. Plaintiffs motion for appointment of counsel, ECF No. 20, is DENIED. 2. Plaintiff's motion for an extension to time to respond to defendants’ discovery requests, ECF No. 21, is GRANTED. 3. Plaintiff shall serve his responses to all outstanding discovery requests—i.e., requests for discovery that were served prior to the date of this order—by no later than April 21, 2026. IT IS SO ORDERED.

Dated: _ February 23, 2026 q———_ JEREMY D. PETERSON UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE