United States Seventh Circuit

In a civil rights action, district court's grant of defendant's motion to dismiss is reversed and remanded where: 1) the court erred in granting defendants' motion to dismiss the case for failure to join the County as a party, as it should have instead ordered the joinder of the County as a third defendant pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 19(a)(2); and 2) the County is not an indispensable party that must be joined within the meaning of Rule 19 in a case brought against the Sheriff in his individual capacity, as the County does not become an indispensable party just because it may need to indemnify the Sheriff in the future. On remand, the case may go forward against defendant Lopez without including the County as a party as plaintiff waived his claim against the Sheriff on appeal.

Appellate Information

• Argued 10/31/2008
• Decided 05/18/2009
• Published 05/18/2009

Judges

• WOOD, Circuit Judge., Before FLAUM, ROVNER, and WOOD, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Seventh Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• David A. Cerda, Attorney (argued), Cerda & Associates, Chicago, IL, for Plaintiff-Appellant.


• For Appellees:
  
• Richard A. Devine, Attorney, Jamie M. Sheehan, Attorney (argued), Office of the Cook County State's Attorney, Chicago, IL, for Defendants-Appellees.