Vicki Drewniak v. JP Morgan Chase Bank NA, et al.

1 WO 6 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 7 FOR THE DISTRICT OF ARIZONA

9 Vicki Drewniak, No. CV-25-00707-TUC-JCH 10 Plaintiff, ORDER v. JP Morgan Chase Bank NA, et al., 13 Defendants.

15 Before the Court is Plaintiff’s Answer to Boeing Employees’ Credit Union’s Counterclaim against Plaintiff and Amendment to Amount of Damage Claimed (Doc. 23).

17 Although Plaintiff is self-represented, she still must comply with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (“Rule”) and the Local Rules of Civil Procedure for the District of Arizona (“LRCiv.”). The Court will strike Plaintiff’s filing for failing to comply with these rules under Rule 12(f)(1).

21 I. Amended Complaint 22 A party may amend its pleading “as a matter of course” within 21 days of serving the pleading or before the opposing party files a responsive pleading. Fed. R. Civ. P. 15(a).

24 “In all other cases, a party may amend its pleading only with the opposing party’s written consent or the court’s leave.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 15(a)(2).

26 Here, 21 days have passed since Plaintiff filed her Complaint and the Defendants have both answered the Complaint. (See Docs. 1, 7, 9.) Accordingly, Plaintiff may only amend her Complaint with the Defendants’ written consent or after filing a motion to amend her Complaint with this Court. Because of this, Plaintiff cannot amend her Complaint and Answer BECU’s Counterclaim in the same document—she must file separate documents.

4 If Plaintiff wishes to file a motion to amend her Complaint in the future, she must comply with LRCiv. 15.1: 6 A party who moves for leave to amend a pleading must attach a copy of the proposed amended pleading as an exhibit to the motion, which must indicate in what respect it differs from the pleading which it amends, by bracketing 8 or striking through the text to be deleted and underlining the text to be added.

The proposed amended pleading must not incorporate by reference any part of the preceding pleading, including exhibits. If a motion for leave to amend 10 is granted, the party whose pleading was amended must file and serve the amended pleading on all parties under Rule 5 of the Federal Rules of Civil 11 Procedure within fourteen (14) days of the filing of the order granting leave 12 to amend, unless the Court orders otherwise.

13 The Court cautions Plaintiff that “an amended complaint supersedes the original complaint and renders the original without legal effect.” Lacey v. Maricopa County, 693 F.3d 896, 927 (9th Cir. 2012). Any ground for relief raised in the original Complaint is waived if it is not alleged in an amended complaint. Id. at 928. As such, the amended complaint must be retyped or rewritten in its entirety and may not incorporate any part of the original Complaint by reference. Any amended complaint submitted by Plaintiff should be clearly designated as such on the face of the document.

20 A. Plaintiff Cannot Amend Her Complaint to Divest this Court of Jurisdiction.

At the Court’s February 9, 2026 hearing, Plaintiff expressed a willingness to amend her Complaint to request damages of less than $75,000 so that this case would be remanded to the Superior Court in Cochise County (see Doc. 22), and Plaintiff’s filing attempts to “amend[] her damage claim from $75,000 to $74,500” (Doc. 23). Upon further research, Plaintiff reducing her damages amount will not result in remand to Cochise County.

The Supreme Court has clearly stated that “events occurring subsequent to removal which reduce the amount recoverable . . . do not oust the district court’s jurisdiction once it has attached.” St. Paul Mercury Indem. Co. v. Red Cab Co., 303 U.S. 283, 293 (1938). Put differently, this Court is not deprived of jurisdiction where “the plaintiff after removal . . . by amendment of its pleadings, reduces the claim below the requisite amount.”

3 Id. at 292. As such, Plaintiff may file a motion to amend her Complaint to reduce her requested damages, but this will not result in remand.

5 II. Answer to Boeing Employees’ Credit Union’s (“BECU”) Counterclaim 6 “In responding to a pleading, a party must: (A) state in short and plain terms its defenses to each claim asserted against it,” if any, “and (B) admit or deny the allegations asserted against it by an opposing party.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(b)(1). A list of affirmative defenses is provided in Rule 8(c)(1).

10 Here, Plaintiff’s response should not address the affirmative defenses in BECU’s answer (See Doc. 7 at 5–6). Instead, Plaintiff’s response should only address BECU’s Counterclaim (Doc. 7 at 6–9.) Plaintiff must either deny, admit, or “recite a lack of knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief about the truth of” each allegation.

Fed. R. Civ. P. (b)(2)–(6). Plaintiff also “must fairly respond to the substance of the allegation” and any general denials to all allegations in the pleadings must be in “good faith.” Fed. R. Civ. P. (b)(2)–(3).

The Court will extend Plaintiff’s deadline for responding to BECU’s Counterclaim.

Plaintiff must file a good faith response by February 27, 2026.

III. Plaintiff Must Participate in Scheduling a Settlement Conference At the Court’s February 9, 2026 hearing, the Parties agreed to participate in a settlement conference (Doc. 22), and the Court referred the matter to Magistrate Judge Jaqueline M. Rateau for said conference. (Doc. 21.) Plaintiff has not responded to Defense Counsel or Judge Rateau’s chambers to schedule said settlement conference. Plaintiff must respond. If Plaintiff has not received these communications, she shall contact Judge Rateau’s chambers at 520-205-4640.

IV. Resources for Self-Represented Litigants On December 18, 2025, Plaintiff received a Notice to Self-Represented Litigant with helpful resources for navigating federal court. (Doc. 4.) The Court encourages Plaintiff to review and utilize the information in these documents, specifically the ! || Handbook for Self-Represented Litigants linked on the fifth page.

2 To lessen Plaintiff's burden of traveling to Tucson to file her documents, the Court || will also direct the Clerk of the Court to send Plaintiff a document titled “Motion to Allow 4|| Electronic Filing by a Party Appearing Without an Attorney and Supporting Information.” || If Plaintiff has the requisite capabilities outlined in the document, she may file a motion || with the Court which, if granted, will permit her to electronically file her documents.

7\| V. Order 8 Accordingly, 9 IT IS ORDERED striking Plaintiff's Answer to Boeing Employees’ Credit || Union’s Counterclaim against Plaintiff and Amendment to Amount of Damage Claimed || (Doc. 23).

12 IT IS FURTHER ORDERED extending the deadline for Plaintiff to file a good || faith response to Boeing Employees’ Credit Union’s Counterclaim to February 27, 2026.

14 IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Plaintiff must participate in scheduling a Settlement conference with Magistrate Judge Jaqueline M. Rateau.

16 IT IS FURTHER ORDERED directing the Clerk of the Court to mail plaintiff a 17) Copy of the document titled “Motion to Allow Electronic Filing by a Party Appearing 18 Without an Attorney and Supporting Information.”

19 Dated this 20th day of February, 2026.

23 / / John C. Hinderaker 24 _/United States District Judge -4- Name Address

Telephone

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF ARIZONA ) ) ) Plaintiff, ) Case No. ) vs. ) MOTION TO ALLOW ) ELECTRONIC FILING ) BY A PARTY APPEARING ) WITHOUT AN ATTORNEY and Defendant. ) SUPPORTING INFORMATION ) )

I, , declare that I am the Plaintiff/Defendant representing myself in this action; that I hereby request permission to electronically file and serve my documents. I state that, upon a showing of good cause below, I am able to comply with the equipment and rule requirements governing electronic filing.

In further support of this application, I answer the following questions: A. Type of personal computer and related software/equipment available for use: • Personal computer running a standard platform such as Windows or Mac OS • Word processor such as Microsoft Word that can export to PDF • Internet access (high speed is recommended) • Web browser (current versions of MS Edge, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox or Safari) • PDF conversion software - Adobe Acrobat current version (Standard or Professional) is recommended • Scanner for paper exhibits or other supporting documents which exist only in paper • Adobe Acrobat Reader or other PDF viewer is needed for viewing e-filed PDF documents

B. Do you have a personal electronic mailbox of sufficient capacity to send and receive electronic notice of case related transmissions?

Yes No C. Are you currently or will you be a subscriber to PACER (Public Access to Court Electronic Records)?

Yes No D. Have you read and become familiar with the District of Arizona's CM/ECF Administrative Policies and Procedures Manual?

Yes No E. Are you able to comply with all the requirements, including the electronic submission of documents in .pdf, of the District of Arizona's CM/ECF Administrative Policies and Procedures Manual?

Yes No F. Are you able to comply with the privacy policy of the Judicial Conference of the United States and the E-Government Act of 2002?

Yes No DATED this day of , 202 .

Your signature in ink

Your name typed or printed

Address Telephone Number PRO SE PARTICIPANT ELECTRONIC CASE FILES REGISTRATION FORM This form is to be used to register for an account on the District of Arizona’s Electronic Case Files (CM/ECF) System. Registered users will have privileges to electronically submit documents and to view and retrieve electronic docket sheets and documents as available for cases assigned to the CM/ECF system. Filers representing themselves and granted leave to electronically file must seek leave to electronically file in each new case. The following information is required for registration: Personal Information First Name Middle Name Last Name Generation Address City State Zip Code Telephone Number Fax Number You must provide a valid e-mail address: E-mail address: E-mail type: HTML – Recommended for most e-mail clients

Plain text – Recommended for older email clients which cannot process HTML e-mail By submitting this registration form, the undersigned agrees to abide by the following rules: This CM/ECF system is for use only in cases designated by the United States District Court for the District of Arizona in which the pro se party has been granted leave to electronically file. The CM/ECF system may be used to file and view electronic documents, docket sheets and notices.

Pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 11, every pleading, motion and other paper must be signed by at least one attorney of record or, if the party is not represented by an attorney, all papers must be signed by the party. A registered user’s account login and password issued by PACER combined with the identification, serves as and constitutes the registered user’s signature.

Therefore, a registered user must protect and secure the password issued by PACER. If there is any reason to suspect the password has been compromised in any way, it is the duty and responsibility of the registered user to immediately notify PACER.

Each registered user desiring to electronically file documents must complete and sign a Pro Se Participant Electronic Case Files Registration Form. Registering as a user constitutes: (1) consent to receive notice electronically and waiver of the right to receive notice by first class mail pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 5(b)(2)(D); (2) consent to electronic service and waiver of the right to service by personal service or first class mail pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 5(b)(2)(D), except with regard to service of a summons and complaint. Waiver of service and notice by first class mail applies to notice of the entry of an order or judgment.

Notice by electronic means is complete as set forth in the Electronic Case Filing Administrative Policies and Procedures Manual.

A registered user accesses court case information by the court’s Internet site or through the Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) Service Center. Although the Clerk’s Office manages the procedures for electronic filing, all electronic public access to case file documents occurs through PACER. A PACER login and password is issued by PACER. To register for PACER, a user must complete the online form or submit a registration form available on the PACER website http://PACER.psc.uscourts.gov By this registration the undersigned agrees to abide by all the rules and regulations in the Electronic Case Filing Administrative Policies and Procedures Manual currently in effect and any changes or additions that may be made to such administrative procedures in the future.

Date s/ Participant Signature Type your full name, prefixed with “s/”, in the field above to acknowledge that you have read and understand the information in this document.

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF ARIZONA ) ) ) Plaintiff, ) ) CV vs. ) ) ORDER ) ) Defendant. ) ) )

IT IS ORDERED, GRANTING the Motion to Allow Electronic Filing by a Party Appearing Without an Attorney in this case only. The party is required to comply with all rules outlined in the District of Arizona's Case Management/Electronic Case Filing Administrative Policies and Procedures Manual, have access to the required equipment and software, have a personal electronic mailbox of sufficient capacity to send and receive electronic notice of case related transmissions, be able to electronically transmit documents to the court in .pdf, complete the attached form to register as a user with the Clerk's Office within five (5) days of the date of this Order, register as a subscriber to PACER (Public Access to Electronic Records) within five (5) days of the date of this Order and comply with the privacy policy of the Judicial Conference of the United States and the E-Government Act of 2002.

Any misuse of the CM/ECF system will result in immediate discontinuation of this privilege and disabling of the account.

DENYING the Motion to Allow Electronic Filing by a Party Appearing Without an Attorney

DATED this day of , 202 .

United States District/Magistrate Judge