Mendez v. Draham

Through attorney Samuel Malat, Mendez and other plaintiffs sued 29 state and federal officials and numerous government entities (defendants), alleging constitutional and other violations under 42 U.S.C. §§ 1983, 1985-86, and 1988. The complaint ran 392 pages with 1,020 numbered paragraphs, no index, and heavy repetition of the same allegations across plaintiffs, claims, and defendants. Opposing counsel warned Malat that many claims — especially § 1983 claims against federal defendants and state officials in their official capacities — were frivolous and that the complaint violated Rule 8(a)(2), threatening Rule 11 sanctions if he didn't fix it. Malat didn't remedy the defects, and the state defendants moved to strike the complaint and sought sanctions. Malat had already been sanctioned twice under Rule 11 in the prior 18 months.