UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT MIDDLE DISTRICT OF FLORIDA ORLANDO DIVISION

AMERICAN GENERAL LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY,

Plaintiff,

v. Case No: 6:22-cv-1834-WWB-EJK

FABIANA CARNEIRO, I.C., and BIANCA CARNEIRO,

Defendants.

ORDER This cause comes before the Court on Plaintiff’s Application for Clerk’s Entry of Default (the “Motion”), filed March 21, 2023, against Defendants Fabiana Carneiro and I.C., a minor. (Doc. 22.) For the reasons set forth below, the Motion is due to be granted. “When a party against whom a judgment for affirmative relief is sought has failed to plead or otherwise defend, and that failure is shown by affidavit or otherwise, the clerk must enter the party’s default.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 55(a). Before the clerk may enter default, he or she must determine that effective service has been made on the defaulting defendant because, without effective service, there is no jurisdiction and no obligation to answer or “otherwise defend.” See Kelly v. Fla.,

(11th Cir. 2007) (unpublished). Plaintiff instituted this action against Defendants Fabiana Carneiro, I.C., a minor, and Bianca Carneiro seeking interpleader relief following the disbursement of Kerly Carneiro’s life insurance policy. (Doc. 1.) Under Rule 12, a party who timely waves service must answer within 60 days after the request for waiver was sent, or 90 days if the request was sent to a party outside of the United States. Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(a)(1)(A)Gi). Here, Plaintiff filed its Complaint on October 6, 2022. (Doc. 1.) On December 12, 2022, Defendant Bianca Carneiro filed an Answer to the Complaint. (Doc. 9.) On December 30, 2022, Plaintiff filed waivers of service that were sent to Defendants Fabiana Carneiro and I.C. on December 17, 2022. (Docs. 10, 11.) Defendants Fabiana Carneiro and I.C. executed the waivers on December 29, 2022. Ud.) Upon execution, Defendants Fabiana Carneiro and I.C. agreed to timely “file and serve an answer or motion... .” (/d.) To date, Defendants Fabiana Carneiro and I.C. have not responded to the Complaint. Thus, the Court finds that entry of a Clerk’s default is appropriate pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(a)(1)(A)(i). Accordingly, it is ORDERED that Plaintiffs Application for Clerk’s Entry of Default (Doc. 22) is GRANTED. The Clerk of Court is DIRECTED to enter default against Defendants Fabiana Carneiro and I.C., a minor. DONE and ORDERED in Orlando, Florida on April 6, 2023.

□□ KIDD UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE