Dismissal based on outside records
Mary Minton Eitel v. Stoll Keenon Ogden PLLC
In brief
- Where it stands
- Dismissed
Petition denied.
- What it’s about
- Mary Eitel challenges the throwing out of her lawsuit against Stoll Keenon Ogden PLLC under a state-law time limit, saying the federal judge relied on docket entries from separate cases that neither side cited.
- Who it affects
- Eitel did not get Supreme Court review of her challenge to how the federal judge used records from other cases.
Summary: written with AI from the case record.
What it's about
She asks whether the judge could use those records without letting her change the complaint or treating the motion as a request to decide the case based on evidence outside the complaint.
Eitel's underlying lawsuit against the law firm was dismissed under a state-law deadline.
Question presented
Whether a federal court sitting in diversity may cite to docket entries in separate proceedings, uncited by either party and extrinsic to the complaint, as the basis for dismissal of the complaint under 12(b)(6) without permitting amendment or converting the motion to one for summary judgment under Rule 56. In effect, may the federal district courts delve into the role of advocate and utilize extrinsic evidence which is neither critical to nor relied upon by a non-moving Plaintiff opposing a 12(b)(6) motion on state statute of limitations grounds without abusing discretion?
Documents
Docket activity
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AI analysis generated: Case Briefing
AI analysis generated: Decision Record
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Case data updated: question_presented, extraction_metadata
Brief added: Petition
More questions
- What did Eitel ask the Supreme Court to review?
- She asked whether a federal judge could throw out her complaint using docket entries from other cases that neither side cited, without letting her change the complaint or treating the motion as a request to decide the case using outside evidence.
- Was oral argument scheduled?
- No. Argument had not been scheduled when the Supreme Court denied review.
- Which appeals court did the case come from?
- The case came from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.
Sources
Primary materials plus reporting. Best-effort analysis: this explainer relies on a mix of primary materials and trusted secondary sources. Official filings and opinions remain authoritative.