Opinion ID: 541732
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: the request to amend

Text: 38 After defendants moved to dismiss in the district court, plaintiff had an opportunity to amend his complaint as of right. 8 Eschewing such a course, plaintiff instead opposed the motion and inserted in his opposition a request that he be allowed to file an amended complaint if the motion was granted. The district court never acted on the request. Correa now portrays this omission as an abuse of the court's discretion. 39 Because leave to amend shall be freely given when justice so requires, Fed.R.Civ.P. 15(a), a district court's denial of a chance to amend may constitute an abuse of discretion if no sufficient justification appears. See Foman v. Davis, 371 U.S. 178, 182, 83 S.Ct. 227, 230, 9 L.Ed.2d 222 (1962). On the other hand, a district court need not grant every request to amend, come what may. See Aoude v. Mobil Oil Corp., 892 F.2d 1115, 1121 (1st Cir.1989); Quaker State Oil Refining Corp. v. Garrity Oil Co., 884 F.2d 1510, 1517-18 (1st Cir.1989). Where an amendment would be futile or would serve no legitimate purpose, the district court should not needlessly prolong matters. See Foman, 371 U.S. at 182, 83 S.Ct. at 230. For aught that appears, this case is in that vein. 40 We have examined the amendments suggested in plaintiff's opposition to the motion to dismiss and in his appellate brief. We find nothing of decretory significance, that is, nothing which would repair the holes in Correa's case. For example, plaintiff offered to submit the unexpurgated text of the engagement letter, but there is no indication that any statements other than the excerpts already contained in the complaint would be relevant. Plaintiff also offered several sworn statements substantiating what the complaint already alleged about plaintiff's excellent work record, the nature of his duties, and OCA's wonted personnel practices. These submissions would plainly have been superfluous; the well-pleaded allegations of the complaint, without buttressing, were taken as true for purposes of defendants' Rule 12(b)(6) motion. See supra Part II and cases cited. Moreover, as we have explained at some length, this case is not about the essential justness of defendants' decision to oust plaintiff from his governmental post; it is about the presence or absence of a claim cognizable under the federal Constitution and 42 U.S.C. Sec. 1983. 41 Having culled plaintiff's representations as to what he might in good faith be able to allege, we are satisfied that this is an instance where the 'new' facts are of the same genre as the 'old' facts.... Dartmouth Review, 889 F.2d at 23. Without any indication that plaintiff had unearthed a viable basis for his stated claim, or that there was some hope for another (legally sufficient) claim, the court below did not abuse its discretion in failing to grant Correa's request for leave to amend. 9