Rule 41(b) and local-counsel rules

A trial court in the Northern District of Texas dismissed a case, under Fed. R. Civ. P. 41(b), because a lawyer based in the Eastern District did not retain local counsel as required by the local rules. That rule says that a defendant, or the court, “may move to dismiss the action or any claim against it” “[i]f the plaintiff fails to prosecute or to comply with these rules or a court order.” In Campbell v. Wilkinson, the Fifth Circuit concluded: “This case does not involve a violation of either ‘these rules’—that is, the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure—or ‘a court order.’ It involves the violation of a local rule. But Rule 41(b) does not mention local rules. This absence of any express reference to ‘local rules’ in Rule 41(b) thus raises the question whether it is ever appropriate to invoke Rule 41(b) based on nothing more than the violation of a local rule.” The Court concluded that it was not, and reversed because the record did not establish a failure to prosecute. No. 20-1102 (Feb. 19, 2021).