throbber
Case: 3:14-cv-00023-bbc Document #: 218 Filed: 03/10/15 Page 1 of 17
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`IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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`FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF WISCONSIN
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`RODNEY RIGSBY, CATHERINE CONRAD
`and QUINCY M. NERI,
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`Plaintiff,
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`v.
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`CHRIS MISCIK, BRUCE BERNDT, BERNDT, CPA,
`MICHAEL RILEY and AXLEY BRYNELSON, LLP,
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`Defendants.
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`OPINION and ORDER
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`14-cv-23-bbc
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`This case arises out of a car accident that injured defendant Chris Miscik. Pro se
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`plaintiff Rodney Rigsby was Miscik’s business partner at the time. Rigsby alleges that he and
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`plaintiffs Catherine Conrad and Quincy Neri (also pro se) agreed to draft a number of
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`documents to be used in Miscik’s state court litigation about the accident in exchange for
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`half of the damages that Miscik recovered. Plaintiffs allege that Miscik later hired counsel
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`(defendants Axley Brynselson, LLP, and Michael Riley) to represent him in the state
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`proceedings and then used the materials plaintiffs drafted to obtain a settlement without
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`sharing the proceeds with plaintiffs as promised. In addition, plaintiffs allege that
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`defendants Bruce Berndt and Berndt, CPA (the accountants for Rigsby and Miscik at the
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`time) helped Miscik hide the settlement from plaintiff.
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`I allowed plaintiffs to proceed on the following claims related to these allegations: (1)
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`1
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`Case: 3:14-cv-00023-bbc Document #: 218 Filed: 03/10/15 Page 2 of 17
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`defendants Axley Brynselson, Riley and Miscik infringed plaintiffs’ copyright by copying
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`litigation documents for which plaintiffs owned the copyright; (2) defendant Miscik
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`breached his contract with plaintiffs by failing to pay them for their services; and (3)
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`defendants Bruce Berndt and Berndt, CPA breached their fiduciary duty to plaintiffs by
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`hiding the settlement money.
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`Two motions for summary judgment are before the court, one filed by defendants
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`Axley Brynselson, Riley and Miscik and one filed by defendants Bruce Berndt and Berndt,
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`CPA. Dkt. ##175 and 203. Having reviewed the parties’ submissions, it is clear that all
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`defendants are entitled to summary judgment. Plaintiffs have adduced no admissible
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`evidence showing that any of the defendants infringed plaintiffs’ copyright, breached a
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`contract with plaintiffs or hid any settlement money from them. Rather, plaintiffs’ summary
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`judgment filings show that their true grievance is that Miscik accepted a settlement offer that
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`was much lower than what they wanted him to accept. (The settlement was for $5000;
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`plaintiffs believed the settlement should have been more than $1 million.) However, the
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`agreement was for half of Miscik’s settlement and that is exactly what Rigsby received. (As
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`it turns out, the other plaintiffs did not have an agreement with Miscik.) If plaintiffs
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`believed they were entitled to more, they should have negotiated a different agreement.
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`2
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`Case: 3:14-cv-00023-bbc Document #: 218 Filed: 03/10/15 Page 3 of 17
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`OPINION
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`A. Copyright (defendants Axley Brynelson, Riley and Miscik)
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`In support of their motion to dismiss, dkt. #22, defendants Axley Brynelson, Riley
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`and Miscik argued that the copyright claim did not have merit because the documents that
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`defendants allegedly copied were the result of the unauthorized practice of law. Dfts.’ Br.,
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`dkt. #23, at 7-10. I rejected this argument at the pleading stage because defendants cited
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`no authority adopting their position and the leading treatise took the opposing view.
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`Melville B. Nimmer & David Nimmer, Nimmer on Copyright § 2.17 (“[T]he fact that a
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`copyrightable work is being used for illegal purposes should not constitute a defense to
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`copyright infringement.”). See also Dream Games of Arizona, Inc. v. PC Onsite, 561 F.3d
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`983, 990 (9th Cir. 2009) (holding that plaintiff could sue for copyright infringement of
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`gambling video game found to be illegal by state supreme court). However, I noted that
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`“[t]here may be strong arguments for declining to follow Nimmer and Dream Games in this
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`case” and that “[d]efendants are free to develop their argument in the context of a motion
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`for summary judgment.” Dkt. #72 at 11.
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`Defendants have not reasserted their argument about the unauthorized practice of
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`law in their summary judgment motion, so I will not reconsider that issue. Instead,
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`defendants argue that they are entitled to summary judgment for several other reasons: (1)
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`defendants did not copy any of plaintiffs’ copyrighted documents; (2) using copyrighted
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`materials as part of litigation is “fair use” under 17 U.S.C. § 107; (3) plaintiffs gave
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`defendant Miscik a license to use the documents for litigation purposes; and (4) plaintiffs
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`3
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`Case: 3:14-cv-00023-bbc Document #: 218 Filed: 03/10/15 Page 4 of 17
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`are not entitled to any damages. (Defendants also argue that many of the documents at
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`issue are not protected by copyright because they are not original works, but I already
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`limited the scope of plaintiffs’ copyright claim on the same ground in defendants’ motion
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`to dismiss, so I need not discuss this issue again. Dkt. #72 at 11-12.)
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`It is unnecessary to resolve all of defendants’ arguments because plaintiffs’ copyright
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`claim fails for the simple reason that defendants deny that they copied any of plaintiffs’
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`documents and plaintiffs have cited no evidence to the contrary. Dfts.’ PFOF ¶¶ 110-11,
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`113, 117, 120, 123-24, 126-28, 130-31, 136, 138-39, 144-50. Plaintiffs assert a number
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`of arguments in an attempt to compensate for their lack of evidence, but none of those
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`arguments have any merit.
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`First, plaintiffs say that defendants did not provide any documentation to prove that
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`they did not copy plaintiffs’ work, e.g., Plts.’ Resp. to Dfts.’ PFOF ¶ 168, dkt. #216, but that
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`argument is misguided. To begin with, it is not clear what documentation defendants could
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`provide to prove that they didn’t copy plaintiffs’ documents. Plaintiffs do not identify what
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`they believe defendants should have submitted. More important, it is well-established in
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`federal court that, on a motion for summary judgment, it is the plaintiffs’ burden to show
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`that they have sufficient evidence to allow a reasonable jury to find in their favor; the
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`defendants are not required to disprove the plaintiffs’ claim. Shields v. Dart, 664 F.3d 178,
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`182 (7th Cir. 2011) (“[The plaintiff] asserts that the defendants bore the burden of showing
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`through affidavits that he was not entitled to summary judgment. But this misunderstands
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`[the plaintiff’s] burden of production. When a plaintiff . . . fails to produce evidence to
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`4
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`Case: 3:14-cv-00023-bbc Document #: 218 Filed: 03/10/15 Page 5 of 17
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`defeat summary judgment, a defendant moving for summary judgment need not support its
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`motion with affidavits or other similar materials negating the opponent's claim.") (internal
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`quotations omitted); Marion v. Radtke, 641 F.3d 874, 876-77 (7th Cir. 2011) (“When a
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`plaintiff fails to produce evidence, the defendant is entitled to judgment; a defendant moving
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`for summary judgment need not produce evidence of its own.”). The defendants’ only
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`burden is to raise the issue in their summary judgment motion and point to the lack of
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`evidence favoring plaintiffs. Modrowski v. Pigatto, 712 F.3d 1166, 1167 (7th Cir. 2013).
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`Finally, there is no rule that a party must submit documentary evidence to support his
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`position; he may rely on self-serving affidavits so long as the party has personal knowledge
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`of the events described. Visser v. Packer Engineering Associates, Inc., 924 F.2d 655, 659
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`(7th Cir. 1991). Of course, defendants have personal knowledge of the issue whether they
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`copied plaintiffs’ documents, so plaintiffs needed to come forward with their own evidence
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`to show that there is a genuine issue of material fact for trial, but they failed to do that.
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`Second, plaintiffs complain throughout their briefs and proposed findings of fact that
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`defendants deprived them of necessary discovery. However, a party may not defeat a motion
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`for summary judgment simply by arguing generally that he needs more discovery, which is
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`what plaintiffs have done. Rather, he must file a separate motion under Fed. R. Civ. P.
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`56(d) and identify exactly what he needs that the defendants have refused to provide and
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`explain why he believes that evidence would have made a difference. American Needle Inc.
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`v. National Football League, 538 F.3d 736, 740-41 (7th Cir. 2008). In this case, plaintiffs
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`do not identify the evidence they believe is missing that would help them prove their
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`5
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`Case: 3:14-cv-00023-bbc Document #: 218 Filed: 03/10/15 Page 6 of 17
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`copyright claim, much less develop an argument that defendants refused to provide that
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`evidence in response to a proper discovery request. Accordingly, this argument fails.
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`Third, plaintiffs argue that it is reasonable to infer that defendants copied the original
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`complaint (which plaintiffs say they drafted) when defendants filed an amended complaint
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`in the state court action. This argument fails at the outset because plaintiffs do not identify
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`any particular passages from the amended complaint that are similar to the original
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`complaint. Instead, plaintiffs say that, “[b]y Riley and Axley doing an amended complaint
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`[they] infringed on Rigsby[’]s work product because he had to use the content in the original
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`complaint to know what to add in the amended complaint.” Plts.’ Resp. to Dfts.’ PFOF ¶
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`125, dkt. #216. Plaintiffs seem to be arguing that all amended complaints necessarily
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`infringe a copyright related to the previous complaint when the amended complaint is
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`prepared by a different person. To the extent that is true, I would have no difficulty
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`concluding that a lawyer’s use of original complaint in that context would qualify as “fair
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`use” under 17 U.S.C. § 707. A rule requiring new counsel to obtain permission from a
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`previous drafter before filing an amended complaint would allow the previous drafter to stall
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`a lawsuit until his demands were met, no matter how unreasonable. Kienitz v. Sconnie
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`Nation LLC, 766 F.3d 756, 759 (7th Cir. 2014) (“[The] goal [of the fair use defense] is to
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`facilitate a class of uses that would not be possible if users always had to negotiate with
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`copyright proprietors.”); Neri v. Monroe, 726 F.3d 989, 993 (7th Cir. 2013) (fair use
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`defense may be appropriate when alleged infringer did not have other alternatives).
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`Finally, plaintiffs argue that defendants “must have” copied plaintiffs’ documents
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`6
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`Case: 3:14-cv-00023-bbc Document #: 218 Filed: 03/10/15 Page 7 of 17
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`because defendants obtained a settlement. E.g., Plts.’ Resp. to Dfts.’ PFOF ¶ 47, dkt. #216.
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`This is a nonsequitur. The fact that defendants obtained a settlement says nothing about
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`how they obtained the settlement or the documents they used. Plaintiffs seem to assume
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`that the documents they created were indispensable to a settlement, but they have made no
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`showing to support that assumption.
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`Even if I were to assume that defendants copied some of plaintiffs’ documents, I
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`would grant summary judgment to defendants on the copyright claim because the
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`undisputed facts show that plaintiff Rigsby gave Miscik a license to use any documents that
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`plaintiffs prepared. “A copyright owner can grant a nonexclusive license orally, or [one] may
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`even be implied from conduct. In fact, consent given in the form of mere permission or lack
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`of objection is also equivalent to a nonexclusive license and is not required to be in writing.”
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`ITOFCA, Inc. v. MegaTrans Logistics, Inc., 322 F.3d 928, 940 (7th Cir. 2003) (internal
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`quotations and alterations omitted). It is reasonable to infer that Rigsby gave defendants
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`a license by entering into a contract that gave him a right to a portion of Miscik’s recovery
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`in exchange for plaintiffs’ legal help. After all, if Miscik did not have the right to use
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`plaintiffs’ documents, what would have been the point of the contract? In other words, if
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`I accept plaintiffs’ argument that Miscik was infringing plaintiffs’ copyright by using the
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`documents in litigation, it would deprive Miscik of the benefit of his bargain because the
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`contract would be requiring him to pay for something he could not use. Even from plaintiffs’
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`perspective, it would make little sense to prohibit Miscik from using the documents in
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`litigation. If the documents were as creative and valuable as plaintiffs believe they are, then
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`Case: 3:14-cv-00023-bbc Document #: 218 Filed: 03/10/15 Page 8 of 17
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`plaintiffs would want Miscik to use the documents to maximize his chances of a larger
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`recovery, which, in turn, would have entitled Rigsby to a larger amount as well.
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`The context of the agreement and the parties’ subsequent conduct confirms a
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`conclusion that defendants had a license to use the documents for the purpose of litigation
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`and settlement. Although plaintiff Rigsby and defendant Miscik made their initial
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`agreement before Miscik retained counsel, Plts.’ Resp. to Dfts.’ PFOF ¶¶ 15-16, dkt. #216,
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`Rigsby and Miscik reaffirmed their agreement after counsel got involved, id. at ¶¶ 18-19,
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`showing that Rigsby anticipated that defendants would make whatever use they could of the
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`documents plaintiffs drafted. Again, any argument to the contrary is a concession by Rigsby
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`that he was expecting something for nothing, or, in legal parlance, that he had not given
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`Miscik any consideration, which would render the contract invalid. Levin v. Perkins, 12
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`Wis. 2d 398, 403, 107 N.W.2d 492, 495 (1961) (“[A] promise needs consideration to be
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`binding and enforceable.”).
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`Plaintiffs do not cite any evidence suggesting that they instructed Miscik that he
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`could not use the documents they drafted for litigation. In fact, the evidence suggests the
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`opposite. In an email Rigsby wrote plaintiff before a meeting between Miscik and his
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`counsel, Rigsby told Miscik to “give this attorney all the tools to get the best deal for you,”
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`dkt. #204-7, which is consistent with a view that Rigsby wanted Miscik to share the
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`documents plaintiffs drafted with his counsel. Accordingly, I have no difficulty concluding
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`as a matter of law that Rigsby’s words and deeds gave Miscik an implied license to use
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`plaintiffs’ documents for litigation and settlement.
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`Case: 3:14-cv-00023-bbc Document #: 218 Filed: 03/10/15 Page 9 of 17
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`In the section of their brief discussing the license issue, plaintiffs say that “[i]t is not
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`reasonable to assume that splitting proceeds means a free giveaway for services and that
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`someone else’s attorney can use all of your hard work for themselves and exclude you.” Dkt.
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`#213 at 26 (emphasis added). This argument shows that plaintiffs’ real grievance is not that
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`defendants allegedly used plaintiffs’ litigation documents, but that defendants did not pay
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`plaintiffs as promised. That issue is not related to plaintiffs’ copyright claim, but to their
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`breach of contract claim, which I will address below.
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`B. State Law Claims
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`Plaintiffs and defendants do not have diverse citizenship, so jurisdiction for plaintiffs’
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`state law claims arises under 28 U.S.C. § 1367, which applies when a state law claim arises
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`out of the same facts as a federal claim. Houskins v. Sheahan, 549 F.3d 480, 495 (7th Cir.
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`2008). Although the general rule is that district courts should relinquish jurisdiction over
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`state law claims when all the federal claims are dismissed before trial, a court has discretion
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`to decide the state law claims for good reasons, Whitely v. Moravec, 635 F.3d 308, 311 (7th
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`Cir. 2011), including if the resolution of the state law claims is clear. Cortezano v. Salin
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`Bank & Trust Co., 680 F.3d 936, 941 (7th Cir. 2012). In this case, the undisputed facts
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`make it clear that plaintiffs’ state law claims have no merit.
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`1. Breach of contract (defendant Miscik)
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`With respect to the breach of contract claim, plaintiffs alleged in their complaint that
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`Case: 3:14-cv-00023-bbc Document #: 218 Filed: 03/10/15 Page 10 of 17
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`“Miscik breached his contract in not paying out Rigsby when he got paid out from case no.
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`12-cv-260.” Dkt. #1, ¶ 54. As it turns out, that allegation was false. It is undisputed that
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`defendant Miscik paid plaintiff Rigsby $2500 in exchange for his services. Dfts’ PFOF ¶ 38;
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`Plts.’ Resp. to Dfts.’ PFOF ¶ 38, dkt. #216. In accordance with the parties’ agreement, this
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`amount was half of the settlement that Miscik received. Dfts.’ PFOF ¶ 19, dkt. #216. In
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`fact, Rigsby’s portion was nearly twice as much as Miscik’s. After deducting plaintiff
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`Rigsby’s half, payments to subrogated insurance carriers and attorney fees and costs, Miscik
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`was left with $1264.82. Dfts.’ PFOF pp 36, dkt. #216.
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`Plaintiffs attempt to challenge these undisputed facts on a number of grounds. For
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`example, they say that they are actually entitled to half of more than $1 million because that
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`was the limit of the insurance policies held by the defendants in the state court case and
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`because that was the amount in the original settlement offer that plaintiffs drafted on behalf
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`of Miscik. However, this argument is a nonstarter because the agreement between Rigsby
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`and Miscik states that Miscik would give Rigsby “50% of the settlement monies received from
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`the auto accident case.” Dkt. #206-9 (emphasis added). Thus, it is irrelevant what plaintiffs
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`believe the settlement should or could have been; the only question is whether Miscik gave
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`Rigsby half of what Miscik actually received. Although plaintiffs repeat many times
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`throughout their briefs and responses to defendants’ proposed findings of fact that Miscik
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`“settled for more than $5,000,” e.g., Plts.’ Resp. to Dfts.’ PFOF ¶ 34, dkt. #216, their only
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`“evidence” in support of that argument is the offer that they made to the defendants in the
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`state court case. Obviously, an offer is not binding without an acceptance. American
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`Case: 3:14-cv-00023-bbc Document #: 218 Filed: 03/10/15 Page 11 of 17
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`National Property & Casualty Co. v. Nersesian, 2004 WI App 215, ¶ 16, 277 Wis. 2d 430,
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`441, 689 N.W.2d 922, 927 (“Until accepted in the mode and manner expressly provided
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`by the terms of the offer, there remains an unaccepted offer, which cannot, in itself, be
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`considered a binding contract.”). Because plaintiffs cite no evidence that the defendants in
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`the state court case ever accepted the settlement offer plaintiffs made, that offer has no
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`bearing on this case. Defendants submitted a copy of the settlement agreement and the
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`check Miscik received, both of which show that Miscik received a $5000 settlement. Dkt.
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`## 148-5 and 205-2.
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`Alternatively, plaintiffs allege that defendants are withholding discovery about the
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`“real” amount of the settlement. The one example plaintiffs provide are unspecified “tax
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`documents,” Plts.’ Resp. to Dfts.’ PFOF ¶ 37, dkt. #216, but plaintiffs do not point to any
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`discovery request they made for Miscik’s tax information during the relevant time period.
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`Further, although plaintiffs filed motions to compel discovery in this case, they do not point
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`to any motion in which they sought to compel Miscik to produce any tax records.
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`Accordingly, that argument is forfeited.
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`Plaintiffs Conrad and Neri do not have a valid claim either. To begin with, when
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`Conrad and Neri intervened in this lawsuit, they stated that their claims were “identical” to
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`Rigsby’s and they adopted his complaint as their own. Dkt. #104 at 1-2; dkt. #106 at 1-2.
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`I relied on those representations when granting the motions to intervene. Dkt. #156. Thus,
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`Conrad’s and Neri’s contract claim should rise and fall with Rigsby’s. Now, Conrad and
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`Neri say that they had separate, verbal agreements with Miscik, but I did not allow Conrad
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`11
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`Case: 3:14-cv-00023-bbc Document #: 218 Filed: 03/10/15 Page 12 of 17
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`and Neri to proceed on those claims, so allegations about a verbal agreement are outside the
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`scope of the lawsuit.
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`Even if I considered Neri’s and Conrad’s new allegations, plaintiffs have not cited any
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`evidence that either Neri or Conrad had an enforceable contract with Miscik. Neri testified
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`during her deposition that she was “honestly . . . not sure” whether she had an agreement
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`with Miscik, and, if she did have an agreement, she could not identify any of its terms. Dkt.
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`#182 at 26-29. Instead, she stated that she had an agreement with Rigsby to receive a
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`percentage of the amount Miscik gave him. Id. at 31. Conrad testified that Miscik “was
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`going to pay me for my time and then Mr. Rigsby was also going to, you know, help with
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`that.” Dkt. #183 at 26. However, she admitted that she and Miscik never established the
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`terms of the agreement. Id. at 27-30. Without a definite agreement on terms, there is no
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`enforceable contract. Management Computer Servs., Inc. v. Hawkins, Ash, Baptie & Co.,
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`206 Wis. 2d 158, 178, 557 N.W.2d 67, 75 (1996) (“Vagueness or indefiniteness as to an
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`essential term of the agreement prevents the creation of an enforceable contract, because a
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`contract must be definite as to the parties' basic commitments and obligations.”); Goebel v.
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`National Exchangors, Inc., 88 Wis. 2d 596, 615, 277 N.W.2d 755, 765 (1979) (“The
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`general rule is that price is an essential ingredient of every contract for the transfer of
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`property or rights therein or for the rendering of services.”). See also Tinder v. Pinkerton
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`Security, 305 F.3d 728, 735-36 (7th Cir. 2002) (witness’s testimony that she “does not
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`recall” event not sufficient to raise genuine issue of material fact). Thus, although Neri and
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`Conrad may have a claim against Rigsby if he failed to share his portion of the settlement,
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`12
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`Case: 3:14-cv-00023-bbc Document #: 218 Filed: 03/10/15 Page 13 of 17
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`they have no claim against Miscik.
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`2. Breach of fiduciary duty (defendants Bruce Berndt and Berndt, CPA)
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`Plaintiffs’ breach of fiduciary duty claim is contingent on their breach of contract
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`claim. Plaintiffs’ theory is that Berndt breached a fiduciary duty to plaintiffs by hiding the
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`“real” amount of defendant Miscik’s settlement while acting as Rigsby’s and Miscik’s
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`accountant. Even if I assume that Berndt had a fiduciary duty to any of the plaintiffs, this
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`claim fails because plaintiffs have adduced no evidence that Miscik received a larger
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`settlement than he reported.
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`Plaintiffs repeat their arguments that defendants failed to prove that they did not
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`violate plaintiffs’ rights and that defendants are withholding discovery, but these arguments
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`fail for the same reasons that they failed on plaintiffs’ other claims. Plaintiffs add that the
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`discovery deadline in this case is not until July 2015 and that they “can obtain more
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`evidence to support their case.” Plts.’ Br., dkt. #200, at 2. However, the court set a
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`discovery deadline after the summary judgment deadline to allow the parties to continue
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`gathering evidence for trial. A party cannot point to the later discovery deadline as a reason
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`for denying a summary judgment motion. The Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit has
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`stated many times that, at summary judgment, the plaintiffs must "put up or shut up" or, in
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`other words, they must “show what evidence [they have] that would convince a trier of fact
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`to accept [their] version of events.” Johnson v. Cambridge Industries, Inc., 325 F.3d 892,
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`901 (7th Cir. 2003). Because plaintiffs have not met their burden, I am granting defendants
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`13
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`Case: 3:14-cv-00023-bbc Document #: 218 Filed: 03/10/15 Page 14 of 17
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`Bruce Berndt’s and Berndt, CPA’s motion for summary judgment.
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`C. Other Issues
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`As they have done throughout the case, plaintiffs have raised many issues that are
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`outside the scope of the claims on which they were allowed to proceed. Because plaintiffs
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`may not amend their complaint in the context of a brief in opposition to summary judgment,
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`Anderson v. Donahoe, 699 F.3d 989, 997 (7th Cir. 2012), I have disregarded all of those
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`other issues.
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`D. Sanctions
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`All of the claims plaintiffs filed in this case are legally frivolous. Although it is true
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`that some of the claims survived a motion to dismiss, this was only because I was required
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`to accept plaintiffs’ allegations as true at the time. Swierkiewicz v. Sorema N. A., 534 U.S.
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`506, 508, n. 1 (2002). Plaintiffs’ summary judgment submissions have made it clear that
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`all of plaintiffs’ allegations are either baseless or downright false, so plaintiffs should have
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`known when they filed the lawsuit that they had no chance of success. Their request in this
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`case for more than $100 billion dollars in damages, Plts.’ Resp. to Dfts.’ PFOF ¶¶ 158-59,
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`dkt. #216, is simply further proof that their claims have no basis in reality.
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`This is not the first time that plaintiffs have filed a lawsuit without merit in this court.
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`With respect to Quincy Neri, in both Neri v. Sentinel Insurance Company, No. 13-cv-382-
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`jdp (W.D. Wis. Aug. 22, 2014), and Neri v. Pinckney Holdings, LLC, No. 12-cv-600-slc
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`Case: 3:14-cv-00023-bbc Document #: 218 Filed: 03/10/15 Page 15 of 17
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`(W.D. Wis. Oct. 25, 2012), the court dismissed Neri’s claims because they were duplicative
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`of a previous lawsuit that she filed.
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`With respect to Catherine Conrad, I awarded attorney fees to the defendants in
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`Conrad v. Bendwald, No. 11-cv-305-bbc (W.D. Wis. Nov. 2, 2012), aff’d, 500 Fed. Appx.
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`526 (7th Cir. 2013), because the “suit was ill-conceived from the beginning, brought without
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`any serious investigation of the law and extended long past the time that plaintiffs should
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`have realized its lack of merit.” I dismissed Conrad v. Bell, Moore & Richter, S.C., No. 11-
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`cv-539-bbc (W.D. Wis. Aug. 30, 2011), at the screening stage because it was clear that
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`subject matter jurisdiction was lacking. I dismissed both Conrad v. Russell, No. 11-cv-570-
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`bbc (W.D. Wis. Sept. 1, 2011), and Conrad v. AM Community Credit Union, No. 13-cv-
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`461-bbc (W.D. Wis. Aug. 12, 2013), aff’d, 750 F.3d 634 (7th Cir. 2014), at the screening
`
`stage as well because it was obvious from the face of those complaints that the defendants
`
`had not violated her federal rights. In Conrad v. Batz, No. 13-cv-475-bbc (W.D. Wis. Feb.
`
`24, 2014), I dismissed most of Conrad’s claims in a screening order because they were legally
`
`frivolous and I dismissed the remaining claims after the defendants pointed out that Conrad
`
`did not have standing to bring those claims.
`
`Plaintiff Rigsby was a co-plaintiff in Conrad v. Bendewald, 11-cv-305-bbc. He filed
`
`motions to intervene in Neri v. Pinckney Holdings, LLC, No. 12-cv-600-slc and Conrad v.
`
`AM Community Credit Union, No. 13-cv-461-bbc, but the motions were denied as moot
`
`after those cases were dismissed.
`
`In Conrad v. AM Community Credit Union, 750 F.3d 634, the court of appeals noted
`
`15
`
`

`
`Case: 3:14-cv-00023-bbc Document #: 218 Filed: 03/10/15 Page 16 of 17
`
`plaintiff Conrad’s history of filing frivolous and burdensome litigation. In addition, the
`
`court stated that it did not appear that Conrad had satisfied her financial obligations
`
`imposed by courts. As a result, the court of appeals directed this court to “consider enjoining
`
`[Conrad] from filing further suits until she pays her litigation debts.” Id. at 638.
`
` The appellate decision in AM Community Credit Union was plaintiff Conrad’s
`
`notice that she was skating on thin ice and needed to stop filing vexatious, frivolous lawsuits
`
`in federal court. Because this case shows that Conrad did not heed that notice, I am
`
`directing her to show cause why this court should not enjoin her from filing additional
`
`lawsuits in this court until she satisfies her federal court debts. Support Systems
`
`International Inc. v. Mack, 45 F.3d 185 (7th Cir. 1995). This order places Rigsby and Neri
`
`on notice that they may be subject to the same sanction if they do not refrain from litigating
`
`other frivolous claims in this court.
`
`IT IS ORDERED that
`
`ORDER
`
`1. The motion for summary judgment filed by defendants Axley Brynselson, LLP,
`
`Michael Riley and Chris Miscik, dkt. #203, is GRANTED.
`
`2. The motion for summary judgment filed by defendants Bruce Berndt and Berndt,
`
`CPA, dkt. #175, is GRANTED.
`
`3. The clerk of court is directed to enter judgment in defendants’ favor and close this
`
`case.
`
`16
`
`

`
`Case: 3:14-cv-00023-bbc Document #: 218 Filed: 03/10/15 Page 17 of 17
`
`4. Plaintiff Conrad may have until March 25, 2015, to show cause why she should
`
`not be prohibited from filing new lawsuits in this court until she shows that she has satisfied
`
`any federal court fees or sanctions that this court has imposed on her.
`
`Entered this 10th day of March, 2015.
`
`BY THE COURT:
`/s/
`BARBARA B. CRABB
`District Judge
`
`17

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