US District Court DPR Docket Feed

Pintas v. Bruce – DPR Transfers Defamation Case to Illinois, Denies Dismissal

William George Pintas, a real estate investor and attorney domiciled in Dorado, Puerto Rico, filed a defamation suit against Seth Bruce, domiciled in Chicago, Illinois, alleging Bruce made false statements about Pintas's conduct as an officer of a Chicago homeowners association. The District of Puerto Rico denied Bruce's Motion to Dismiss and transferred the case to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, finding that Puerto Rico lacked personal jurisdiction over the defendant because the allegedly defamatory statements concerned Illinois HOA matters and the plaintiff failed to demonstrate the requisite contacts to establish specific jurisdiction.

Section 406(b) Attorney Fees Reduced to $9,075

The U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico partially granted Plaintiff's counsel's Section 406(b) petition for attorney fees in a Social Security disability case, reducing the requested $9,625 to $9,075 to account for administrative tasks. The court simultaneously ordered that the $3,300 previously awarded under the Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA) be refunded to Plaintiff, consistent with the Gisbrecht rule against double recovery. The Commissioner neither opposed nor assented to the petition.

Hardware Plus, Inc. v. Omnimax International LLC - Ace Hardware Reconsideration Denied

The United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico denied Codefendant Ace Hardware International's Motion for Reconsideration under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 59(e), filed June 12, 2025. Ace sought reconsideration of the Court's May 15, 2025 ruling that Hardware Plus, Inc.'s tortious interference claim was not time-barred. The Court found that Ace failed to present any new argument or any argument it could not have raised before the original ruling, noting that Rule 59(e) motions must be used sparingly and do not allow parties to reinvent their case with hindsight.