KPS & Associates, Inc. v. Designs by FMC, Inc.

318 F.3d 1 (2003)

Study Aids
Case Briefs Overview
Casebooks
Case Briefs
K
From our private database of 46,300+ case briefs, written and edited by humans—never with AI.

KPS & Associates, Inc. v. Designs by FMC, Inc.

United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
318 F.3d 1 (2003)

Facts

KPS & Associates, Inc. (KPS) (plaintiff) sued Designs by FMC, Inc. (FMC) (defendant) in September 1999 for outstanding commissions. The complaint body described damages of $131,033, but $183,577 was claimed in the ad damnum clause. After a contentious motion practice, KPS requested entry of default against FMC for failure to file an answer on March 1, 2000. The clerk entered notice of default on March 10, as permitted by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure (FRCP) 55(a). FMC’s lawyer, Schrader, responded on March 21, blaming the default on a temporary secretary’s mistake. Schrader moved to set aside the default a week later. The district judge concluded Schrader’s explanation was a fabrication, based on his previous “stonewalling” and duplicitous behavior. The district judge entered default against FMC and concluded damages were a sum certain established by KPS’s complaint. A magistrate judge reviewed the case for the limited purpose of determining whether damages should be double or treble under state law. The magistrate concluded double damages were warranted, and the district judge awarded $367,154. FMC appealed, arguing the default should be vacated because: (1) it was not willful, (2) FMC had a valid defense, and (3) KPS was not prejudiced.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Lipez, J.)

What to do next…

  1. Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.

    You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 811,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools—such as Yale, Berkeley, and Northwestern—even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.

    Unlock this case briefRead our student testimonials

  2. Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.

    Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.

    Learn about our approachRead more about Quimbee

Here's why 811,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

  • Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,300 briefs, keyed to 988 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
  • The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
  • Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
  • Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership
Here's why 811,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
  • Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
  • The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
  • Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
  • 46,300 briefs - keyed to 988 casebooks
  • Uniform format for every case brief
  • Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
  • Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
  • Top-notch customer support

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership

Casebooks

Civil Procedure

Key Terms