Background
Latoshia L. Reeves filed a pro se appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Maryland. She sought to challenge an order that denied her motion to shield her case from public records, denied her motions for default judgment, and denied as moot her motion to expedite a decision on the default judgment motions.
The court’s reasoning
The court explained that it may exercise jurisdiction only over final orders under Section twelve hundred and ninety-one of Title twenty-eight of the United States Code, and certain interlocutory and collateral orders under Section twelve hundred and ninety-two and Federal Rule of Civil Procedure fifty-four. The court found that the order Reeves sought to appeal was neither a final order nor an appealable interlocutory or collateral order. Accordingly, the court dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction.
What it means going forward
The dismissal prevents the appellate court from reviewing the merits of the district court’s decisions on shielding the case or default judgments until a final order is entered.