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Civil Procedure Keyed to Spencer
CompuServe Inc. v. Saperstein
Facts
Jerry Saperstein (Defendant) is the only shareholder of FontBank, Inc. (FontBank). Defendant, acting pro se, sued CompuServe (Plaintiff) in state court for breach of a contract with FontBank. Plaintiff sued Defendant and FontBank for tortious business practices and violations of Ohio law and sought a declaratory judgment in federal court. Defendant counterclaimed for defamation, business torts, and business practice violations under Ohio and Illinois law. Defendant’s claims were conclusory in nature, and Plaintiff moved for a more definite statement on two of Defendant’s four counterclaims. Defendant filed an amended answer, adding names and a statement asserting that he had been unable to identify defamatory statements due to Plaintiff’s failure to answer interrogatories and produce documents. Next, Defendant refiled the amended answer with six additional counterclaims, though he did not request permission from the court under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure (FRCP) 15(a). The judge held a pretrial conference. Without giving Defendant leave to amend, the judge granted Plaintiff’s motion to strike Defendant’s six new counterclaims and sua sponte dismissed all of Defendant’s remaining claims without prejudice. The judge asserted that Defendant had failed to provide a more definite statement despite amending his answer twice. Plaintiff moved to dismiss its federal action without prejudice, which was denied. The court granted its subsequent motion to dismiss with prejudice. Defendant appealed the dismissal of all claims.
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