Opinion ID: 2372937
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The District Court's Order Granting Sanctions

Text: Johnson also appeals from the district court's order imposing sanctions under Rule 11 or, alternatively, 28 U.S.C. § 1927. We review a district court's sanctions order for abuse of discretion. Gollomp v. Spitzer, 568 F.3d 355, 368 (2d Cir.2009). Johnson's attorney contends that the court abused its discretion because the University failed to serve the sanctions motion twenty-one days before filing it, in violation of Rule 11(c)(2)'s safe-harbor provision. The University argues that it substantially complied with the safe-harbor provision by delineating Appellant-counsel's sanctionable conduct in its opposition to Johnson's motion for leave to amend. Because we hold that the district court properly exercised its discretion to sanction pursuant to § 1927, we need not reach the court's alternate Rule 11 sanctions ruling. A court may award § 1927 sanctions only when the attorney's actions are so completely without merit as to require the conclusion that they must have been undertaken for some improper purpose. Gollomp, 568 F.3d at 368. In addition, the court must find bad faith and must provide the attorney notice and an opportunity to be heard. Id. Here, after a hearing on the University's sanctions motion, the district court found that Johnson's attorney pursued claims she knew had no basis in law or fact. The court focused on counsel's repeated allegations that the University made an unsolicited, libelous statement about Johnson to the Delaware State Medical Board when, in fact, Johnson's attorney requested and authorized the release of the allegedly libelous statement. We hold that the district court's decision was reasonable and not an abuse of discretion.