Dorn v. State Bank
Dorn v. State Bank
Opinion of the Court
George J. Dorn appeals pro se from the district court’s
The district court dismissed Dorn’s initial complaint for failure to state a claim pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6) on August 24, 1984. On September 6, 1984 Dorn filed a motion to vacate judgment which the court denied on September 7. Dorn did not appeal.
On November 21, 1984 Dorn filed a motion for leave to file an amended complaint pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 15(a) on the basis of newly discovered evidence. Dorn, in his amended complaint, incorporated much of the language from his earlier complaint and cited additional statutes and constitutional amendments as bases for jurisdiction. He also attached to the complaint additional exhibits of earlier loan transactions with State Bank.
The district court’s denial of Dorn’s motion for leave to file an amended complaint was entirely proper. Dorn did not file his motion until approximately three months after the district court entered its judgment of dismissal. Although a pretrial motion for leave to amend one’s complaint is to be liberally granted, different considerations apply to motions filed after dismissal. See, e.g., Wright v. Anthony, 733 F.2d 575, 577 (8th Cir. 1984); Hinton v. CPC International, Inc., 520 F.2d 1312, 1314 (8th Cir. 1975). After a complaint is dismissed, the right to amend under Fed.R.Civ.P. 15(a) terminates. Czeremcha v. International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, 724 F.2d 1552, 1556 (11th Cir. 1984). Although a party may still file a motion for leave to amend and amendments should be granted liberally, such a motion would be inappropriate “if the court has clearly indicated either that no amendment is possible or that dismissal of the complaint also constitutes dismissal of the action.” Czeremcha, 724 F.2d at 1556 n. 6. Here, the district court’s order of August 24, 1984 dismissed the complaint on its merits and did not grant Dorn leave to amend.
It is possible, of course, to give relief from a final judgment of dismissal un
The judgment of the district court is affirmed.
. The Honorable C. Arlen Beam, United States District Judge, District of Nebraska.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- George J. DORN v. The STATE BANK OF STELLA, a corporation Richard McMullen Andrew McMullen Jasmine McMullen The Travelers Insurance Company Edward L. Bischoff Alan Loftis George Nelson and R.L. Buzard
- Cited By
- 1 case
- Status
- Published