Motion for default judgement against multiple companies: ALL OR NOTHING? Can it be partial

[John D dude]

What is the name of your state? FL

There is this guy who made like 20 companies to escape debt. Some of them can be served and other ones can't be served or might be difficult to serve.

10 of those companies have passed the required 20 days deadline to response to the lawsuit. I think it has been over 30 days in fact.

The other 10 companies are having issues locating them.

My question is can you ask for a default judgment against the 10 companies which never responded after being correctly served or do I have to wait until every company is served which could take years to locate assuming they can be located at all?

Is it all or nothing situation?

Thanks.

 

[Zigner]

What is the name of your state? FL

There is this guy who made like 20 companies to escape debt. Some of them can be served and other ones can't be served or might be difficult to serve.

10 of those companies have passed the required 20 days deadline to response to the lawsuit. I think it has been over 30 days in fact.

The other 10 companies are having issues locating them.

My question is can you ask for a default judgment against the 10 companies which never responded after being correctly served or do I have to wait until every company is served which could take years to locate assuming they can be located at all?

Is it all or nothing situation?

Thanks.

What did 20 companies do to you?

 

[quincy]

What is the name of your state? FL

There is this guy who made like 20 companies to escape debt. Some of them can be served and other ones can't be served or might be difficult to serve.

10 of those companies have passed the required 20 days deadline to response to the lawsuit. I think it has been over 30 days in fact.

The other 10 companies are having issues locating them.

My question is can you ask for a default judgment against the 10 companies which never responded after being correctly served or do I have to wait until every company is served which could take years to locate assuming they can be located at all?

Is it all or nothing situation?

Thanks.

Where does the defamation come in?

Is the fellow who created these various and assorted companies also named as defendant?

The defendants are joint defendants? In multi-defendant suits where the complaint alleges the defendants are jointly liable, a default judgment against one or more of the defendants could result in a judgment inconsistent with the judgment rendered against the remaining defendants. Therefore, the general rule is that judgments cannot be split and no judgment is final until the case against all parties is final.

 

[quincy]

See: Frow v. De La Vega, 82 US 552 (1872): https://casetext.com/case/frow-v-de-la-vega

 

[John D dude]

What did 20 companies do to you?

1 company stole money from me, 19 of them are carbon copies of the 1 company made to hide assets from the judgment. All the same owner selling the same products.

10 of the 20 all had the same address.

10 served with lawsuit and no response for over 30 days.

 

[zddoodah]

My question is can you ask for a default judgment against the 10 companies which never responded after being correctly served or do I have to wait until every company is served which could take years to locate assuming they can be located at all?

Is it all or nothing situation?

I'm guessing you're suing without a lawyer.

You can ask for anything you like, but the typical way to proceed in a situation such as you described would be to request entry of default against the defendants whose response time has passed while you figure out the other defendants. Once everyone has either responded or been defaulted or dismissed, you can then proceed to seek judgment. I'd suggest at least consulting with a local civil litigation attorney.

 

[quincy]

1 company stole money from me, 19 of them are carbon copies of the 1 company made to hide assets from the judgment. All the same owner selling the same products.

10 of the 20 all had the same address.

10 served with lawsuit and no response for over 30 days.

Why did you make the decision to sue all of the companies instead of just the owner of all of the companies?

Did you report the theft to the police?

Your lawsuit has nothing to do with defamation.

 

[John D dude]

See: Frow v. De La Vega, 82 US 552 (1872): https://casetext.com/case/frow-v-de-la-vega

Does that old 1872 case still hold up in 2023?

 

[quincy]

Does that old 1872 case still hold up in 2023?

Yes. Still holds. Recent cases refer to it as the “De La Vega” rule (“A final decree on the merits cannot be made separately against one of several defendants upon a joint charge against all where the case is still pending as to the others.”)

Florida is constantly doing weird things with their laws, though, so I recommend you hire an attorney in your area to help you, this if your damages are significant enough to warrant the added cost.

 

[John D dude]

Why did you make the decision to sue all of the companies instead of just the owner of all of the companies?

Did you report the theft to the police?

Your lawsuit has nothing to do with defamation.

The owner uses the shell companies as a shield to hide money. Even know he is the 100% owner of the company, they have 0 employees and share the same address as him. The banks act like its 2 completely separate people/organizations.

 

[quincy]

The owner uses the shell companies as a shield to hide money. Even know he is the 100% owner of the company, they have 0 employees and share the same address as him. The banks act like its 2 completely separate people/organizations.

What sort of damages are you seeking?

 

[Zigner]

The owner uses the shell companies as a shield to hide money. Even know he is the 100% owner of the company, they have 0 employees and share the same address as him. The banks act like its 2 completely separate people/organizations.

It was likely improper to sue 19 of the 20 companies. In fact, it could be considered frivolous, subjecting you to sanctions. It's too bad you didn't talk to an attorney first.

 

[John D dude]

What sort of damages are you seeking?

I am seeking to have all the companies to be deemed alter egos of him for collection purposes.

 

[Zigner]

I am seeking to have all the companies to be deemed alter egos of him for collection purposes.

What is the underlying debt you are alleging? Do you have a judgment against him already? What are the legal structures of the companies you are suing, including the one that you allege wronged you?

 

[quincy]

I am seeking to have all the companies to be deemed alter egos of him for collection purposes.

What is the amount of damages you are seeking?