Joseph Czerw, Plaintiffv.Lafayette Storage & Moving Corporation, et al., Defendants
DECISION AND ORDERINTRODUCTION Plaintiff Joseph Czerw brings this action against Defendants Lafayette Storage & Moving Corporation (“Lafayette”) and Matthew Ferrentino, in his official and individual capacities, for filing a fraudulent information return in violation of 26 U.S.C. §7434. ECF No. 1. Plaintiff — a former employee of Lafayette — alleges that, for the 2015 tax year, Defendants improperly classified him as an independent contractor and misrepresented the amount they paid him in relevant federal tax documents. Id. On November 30, 2017, the Clerk of Court filed an entry of default against Defendants, after they failed to appear or otherwise defend. ECF No. 8. Plaintiff now moves for default judgment. ECF No. 14. For the following reasons, Plaintiff’s motion is GRANTED.LEGAL STANDARDFederal Rule of Civil Procedure 55 sets forth the procedure for obtaining a default judgment. First, the plaintiff must have secured an entry of default from the clerk, which requires a showing, “by affidavit or otherwise,” that the defendant “has failed to plead or otherwise defend” itself in the action. Fed. R Civ. P. 55(a). Once the plaintiff has obtained an entry of default, and if its claim against the defendant is not “for a sum certain,” the plaintiff “must apply to the court for a default judgment.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 55(b)(1)-(2).The clerk’s entry of default does not mean that default judgment is automatically warranted. See Bricklayers & Allied Craftworkers Local 2, Albany, N.Y. Pension Fund v. Moulton Masonry & Constr., LLC, 779 F.3d 182, 187 (2d Cir. 2015) (per curiam). Instead, “the court may, on [the plaintiff's] motion, enter a default judgment if liability is established as a matter of law when the factual allegations of the complaint are taken as true.” Id. If liability is established, the Court must then determine the proper amount of damages, which requires evidentiary support. See id. at 189 (“[A] party’s default…is not considered an admission of damages.” (quotation omitted)).BACKGROUNDThe following facts are taken from the complaint, unless otherwise noted. Lafayette is a business that “conducts household and commercial moving throughout North America,” ECF No. 1 19, and Ferrentino is the company’s president and owner. Id. 13. Plaintiff alleges that Ferrentino “exercised operational control over” the company’s day-to-day functions and the “terms of plaintiff’s employment.” Id.
