Muzafar Babakr v. Jacob T. Fowles, et al.

Under Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a moving party is allowed an out-of-time filing if they establish excusable neglect. Fed. R. Civ. P. 6(b)(1)(B). Under Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, summary judgment is appropriate only if the “movant shows that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a). The questions presented, over two of which the courts of appeals are openly and squarely split, are: Whether the four Pioneer factors set out by this Court for the test of excusable neglect carry unequal weight such that the third one outweighs all three other factors and must be the only factor to be considered for determining excusable neglect. Whether the burden-shifting framework of summary judgment is altered when qualified immunity is raised such that the nonmoving party should bear the initial summary judgment burden. Whether summary judgment should be granted where the evidence of the movant is contradictory.