# Brown v. Wahlig > Superior Court of Maine ยท June 29, 2017 URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/cases/10811321 ## Case - **Court:** Superior Court of Maine - **Decided:** June 29, 2017 - **Precedential status:** Unpublished - **Opinion:** Opinion - **Judges:** MaryGay Kennedy - **Cited by:** 0 later opinions in the Frix Law Library ## Citator (automated) - No negative treatment found by the automated citator. That is not the same as a confirmation that the case is good law; read the citing cases. - Full citator and citing cases: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/cases/10811321 ## Opinion text STATE OF MAINE SUPERIOR COURT ANDROSCOGGIN, ss. CIVIL ACTION DOCKET NO. CV-15-156 JEFFREY BROWN and AMBER ) JUN 29 '17 AM9:05 BROWN ) ANDRO SUPERIOR GOU! Plaintiffs, ) V. ) ORDER ON DEFENDANT'S ) MOTION FOR INVOLUNTARY JOHN B. WAHLIG, JR., M.D. ) DISMISSAL ) Defendant. ) Pending before the court is a motion to dismiss by Defendant John B. Wahlig, Jr., M.D., pursuant to Maine Rule of Civil Procedure 41(b)(2), a complaint filed against him by Plaintiffs Jeffrey Brown and Amber Brown, for failure to comply with a court order. For the reasons below, this court grants Defendant's motion. I. Background On October 20, 2014, Defendant John B. Wahlig, Jr., M.D. performed back surgery on Plaintiff Jeffery Brown. (Compl. cir 7.) One week later, Defendant performed a second surgery on Plaintiff Jeffery Brown. (Compl. cir 14.) On September 23, 2016, Plaintiffs filed a complaint against Defendant for: (I) alleged malpractice (negligence) during the week between the surgeries, and (II) loss of consortium allegedly experienced by Plaintiff Amber Brown as a result of the alleged injuries suffered by Plaintiff Jeffery Brown. (Compl. 11 17, 23.) On September 28, 2016, Defendant answered, and a scheduling order was signed on September 29, 2016. On December 27, 2016, Plaintiffs' counsel moved for leave to withdraw. The court granted this motion on February 3, 2017, and ordered Plaintiffs within 20 days to secure the representation of another attorney or to state they would be representing themselves. On March 24, 2017, the court granted Plaintiffs' February 23, 2017 motion to extend their time to comply with this order until March 25, 2017. On April 6, 2017, Defendant filed this motion for 1 of 2 involuntary dismissal. The 21-day window for Plaintiffs to oppose Defendant's motion expired on April 27, 2017. M.R. Civ. P. 7(c). II. Standard of Review A defendant may move to dismiss a claim for the failure of a plaintiff to comply with a court order. M.R. Civ. P. 41(b )(2). The Law Court has held that the reviewing court should, in its discretion, evaluate the circumstances of the case as to whether there exists "good cause" to the contrary of the dismissal. West Point-Pepperell v. State Tax Assessor, 1997 ME 58,