Unreported / Non-Citable
Background
Rhonda Fleming and Miriam Crystal Herrera brought this consolidated action against Warden T. Rule and other defendants in the Northern District of Texas.
Elizabeth Ann Hardin and Brenda Leigh Kirk moved on November 10, 2025, for permission to intervene. Their proposed complaint-in-intervention was submitted with the motion.
The Court’s Holding
The court granted Hardin and Kirk’s motion for permissive intervention and directed the clerk to docket their proposed complaint-in-intervention as a separate entry.
Applying Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 24(b), the court concluded that the motion was timely under the circumstances, the proposed intervenors’ claims shared a question of law or fact with the main action, and intervention would not unduly delay the case or prejudice the original parties’ rights.
Key Takeaways
- District courts have broad discretion to permit intervention under Rule 24(b).
- Permissive intervention requires a timely motion and a common question of law or fact.
- The court found that adding Hardin and Kirk would cause neither undue delay nor prejudice to the original parties.
Why It Matters
The order permits Hardin and Kirk to pursue their claims within the existing consolidated litigation instead of requiring a separate action. It also illustrates the three considerations governing permissive intervention: timeliness, a common question, and the absence of undue delay or prejudice.