Clark v. Nixon

UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 03-318 MICHAEL CRAIG CLARK, Petitioner, versus JONATHAN NIXON; JEFF PROCTOR; MARK DAVIS; STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA; DONALD HOBBS; KENT CHAPPELL; CLIFF HOBBS; PAUL COPELAND; CHAD MATTHEWS; ALAN CORPREW; SCOTT WAFF, Respondents. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, at Elizabeth City. Malcolm J. Howard, District Judge. (CA-02-47-2-H(1)) Submitted: December 11, 2003 Decided: December 19, 2003 Before NIEMEYER and MOTZ, Circuit Judges, and HAMILTON, Senior Circuit Judge. Petition denied by unpublished per curiam opinion. Michael Craig Clark, Petitioner Pro Se. Donald Carpenter Prentiss, John David Leidy, HORNTHAL, RILEY, ELLIS & MALAND, Elizabeth City, North Carolina, for Respondents. Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. See Local Rule 36(c). PER CURIAM: Michael Craig Clark petitions for permission to appeal the district court’s orders granting the Defendants’ motion to compel and denying his motion for a protective order. See Fed. R. App. P. 5. Because the district court’s orders do not contain the statement required by 28 U.S.C. § 1292(b) (2000) and by Fed. R. App. P. 5 that the order involves a controlling question of law on which substantial grounds for disagreement exist, we deny Clark’s petition for permission to appeal. Moreover, to the extent that Clark’s petition could be construed as a notice of appeal from these orders, we find that we lack jurisdiction over these orders. This court may exercise jurisdiction only over final orders, 28 U.S.C. § 1291 (2000), and certain interlocutory and collateral orders, 28 U.S.C. § 1292; Fed. R. Civ. P. 54(b); Cohen v. Beneficial Indus. Loan Corp., 337 U.S. 541 (1949). The orders that Clark seeks to appeal are neither final orders nor appealable interlocutory or collateral orders. Accordingly, we deny the petition. We also deny Clark’s pending motion to stay the district court proceedings. We dispense with oral argument because the facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the materials before the court and argument would not aid the decisional process. PETITION DENIED 2