(PC) Smart v. Navrrow ( 2020 )

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 11 AARON SMART, 1:20-cv-00144-SAB (PC) 12 Plaintiff, ORDER DENYING MOTION FOR 13 v. APPOINTMENT OF COUNSEL, WITHOUT PREJUDICE 14 NAVRROW, et al., (Doc. No. 7) 15 Defendant. 16 17 18 On February 12, 2020, Plaintiff filed a motion seeking the appointment of counsel. 19 Plaintiff does not have a constitutional right to appointed counsel in this action, Rand v. Rowland, 20 113 F.3d 1520, 1525 (9th Cir. 1997), and the court cannot require an attorney to represent 21 plaintiff pursuant to 28 U.S.C. ' 1915(e)(1). Mallard v. United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, 490 U.S. 296, 298 (1989). However, in certain exceptional 22 circumstances the court may request the voluntary assistance of counsel pursuant to section 23 1915(e)(1). Rand, 113 F.3d at 1525. 24 Without a reasonable method of securing and compensating counsel, the court will seek 25 volunteer counsel only in the most serious and exceptional cases. In determining whether 26 “exceptional circumstances exist, the district court must evaluate both the likelihood of success of 27 the merits [and] the ability of the [plaintiff] to articulate his claims pro se in light of the 28 1 | complexity of the legal issues involved.” Id. (internal quotation marks and citations omitted). 2 In the present case, the Court does not find the required exceptional circumstances. Even 3 | if itis assumed that Plaintiff is not well versed in the law and that he has made serious allegations 4 | which, if proved, would entitle him to relief, his case is not exceptional. This Court is faced with 5 | similar cases almost daily. Further, at this early stage in the proceedings, the Court cannot make 6 | adetermination that plaintiff is likely to succeed on the merits, and based on a review of the 7 | record in this case, the court does not find that plaintiff cannot adequately articulate his claims. g | Id. 9 For the foregoing reasons, Plaintiff’s motion for the appointment of counsel is HEREBY 19 | DENIED, without prejudice. 11 IT IS SO ORDERED. ZL, 3 | Dated: _February 13, 2020 OF UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 >