Welch v. Liggett

Opinion

1 4 5 RENTRELL D. WELCH, Case No.: 2:19-cv-01243-APG-NJK Plaintiff, 6 ORDER 7 [Docket No. 41] 3 LIGGETT, et al., Defendants. 9 10 Pending before the Court is Plaintiff Kentrell D. Welch’s motion for appointment of 11} counsel. Docket No. 41. Plaintiff submits that exceptional circumstances exist in this case 12] warranting appointment of counsel. /d. at 9, 11. Specifically, Plaintiff submits that, in 2015, he was adjudicated incompetent based on a neuropsychological evaluation. [d. at 7, 19-30. 14 The Court “must appoint a guardian ad litem — or issue another appropriate order — to 15] protect a[n] ... incompetent person who is unrepresented in an action.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 17(c)(2). 16] Further, the Court “is under a ‘legal obligation’ to consider whether an incompetent person is 17|| adequately protected.” Jurgens v. Dubendorf, 2015 WL 6163464, at *3 (E.D. Cal. Oct. 19, 2015) (citing United States v. 30.64 Acres of Land, 795 F.2d 796, 805 (9th Cir. 1986)). 19 Accordingly, the Court hereby SETS a hearing for 10:00 a.m. on January 14, 2021, to 20] determine whether Plaintiff is adequately protected in the instant action. Defendants may respond 21} to Plaintiff's motion — any response must be filed no later than December 21, 2020. As Plaintiff 22\| is currently housed in Ely State Prison, the Attorney General’s Office is INSTRUCTED to 23] coordinate with the undersigned’s courtroom deputy, Ari Caytuero, at 702-464-5566, to facilitate 24| Plaintiff's video conference appearance at the hearing. 26 DATED: December 2, 2020. Loi DS ge

28 UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE