Opinion ID: 553353
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Whether the underlying claim appears to have merit.

Text: 44 Depending on the record before the court, consideration of one or more of the Poulis factors may be required when a party moves under Rule 37(b)(2) for dismissal of an opponent's claim as a sanction for a failure to respond to discovery, e.g., Hicks v. Feeney, 850 F.2d 152 (3d Cir.1988), cert. denied, 488 U.S. 1005, 109 S.Ct. 786, 102 L.Ed.2d 777 (1989), when a defendant moves under Rule 41(b) for an involuntary dismissal as a sanction for a failure to prosecute, e.g., Dunbar v. Triangle Lumber and Supply Co., 816 F.2d 126 (3d Cir.1987), or when a plaintiff moves under Rule 55(b) for a default judgment as a sanction for a failure to plead or otherwise defend, e.g., Comdyne I, Inc. v. Corbin, 908 F.2d 1142 (3d Cir.1990). 9 45 We have never held, however, that consideration of Poulis type factors is required before a court enters a summary judgment on an uncontested Rule 56 motion and we decline to do so in this case. Summary judgment under Rule 56 is not entered as a sanction, and, as this case demonstrates, it simply would not be feasible for district courts to comply with such a requirement. When the moving party makes the showing of entitlement to relief required by Rule 56 and its opponent fails to respond, the court will not, in most instances, have a record that will permit it to give consideration to the Poulis factors. In this case, for example, when the district court entered summary judgment, it had no way of knowing, short of conducting a sua sponte investigation, why the Board failed to contest the motion. Since the Board filed no motion for reconsideration or relief from judgment, the district court, and indeed this court, remains uninformed to this day on that issue. Under these circumstances, we cannot fault the district court for failing to speculate about the Poulis factors. 46 Rule 56 specifies in detail what the moving party must do to demonstrate its entitlement to relief. When such a demonstration has been made and there is no response, the rule specifies what the court must do. It does not require that the court initiate its own investigation into the background of the failure to respond. Accordingly, we hold that if a motion for summary judgment is filed in a court with a local rule like Rule 6(i) and the opponent fails to respond, a district court may process the motion in accordance with Rule 56 without scheduling a hearing and conducting an inquiry into the Poulis factors.