Opinion ID: 3063224
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Proper Movants for Summary Judgment

Text: Staley next argues that the district court erred by finding that Defendants Donald and Head were movants for summary judgment because their counseled motion stated that “Defendants Hall, Perry, and Lace move this Court to grant summary judgment in their favor.” Staley has failed to demonstrate that the typographical error in one portion 1 Staley also claims (1) that the magistrate judge violated Fed. R. Civ. P. 72(a) by treating his objection to the ruling as a motion for reconsideration instead of an objection to be heard before the district court and (2) the district court misapplied that same rule by not initially ruling on his objection. Defendants concede that the pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 72(a), Staley’s objection should have been referred to and ruled on by the district court. However, any technical misstep does not alter our ultimate disposition of the issue. In response to a motion for reconsideration, the district court ultimately found that Staley was due no relief under Fed. R. Civ. P. 72(a) because the magistrate judge’s decision was not clearly erroneous, the proper standard under Rule 72(a). 4 of the defendants’ motion for summary judgment otherwise harmed his case. Although one sentence in the body of the motion referred to Defendants Hall, Perry, and Lacy, the motion was entitled “Defendants Donald and Head’s Motion for Summary Judgment.” Moreover, the defendants supported their motion with filings entitled “Defendants Donald and Head’s Statement of Facts as to which There Is no Genuine Issue to be Tried” and “Defendants Donald and Head’s Memorandum of Law in Support of Motion for Summary Judgment.” Finally, the magistrate judge issued an order entitled “Order Directing Response to Motion for Summary Judgment,” in which he notified Staley that defendants Donald and Head had filed a motion seeking summary judgment. Staley was clearly notified of the proper movants and his later filings demonstrate that he understood that he was responding to a motion on behalf of Defendants Donald and Head. Because Staley has failed to show that he was harmed by the typographical error in the defendants’ motion for summary judgment, he has failed to show that the district court erred in finding Defendants Donald and Head to be movants for summary judgment.