ZK Results – Attorneys Zach Evans and Alex Protivnak Obtain Dismissal of Improper Third-Party Complaint in Federal Court
Attorneys Zach Evans and Alex Protivnak recently secured dismissal of a third-party complaint in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania. In Blankenship v. Wholesome Logistics, LLC, Civil Action No. 3:25-cv-00122, Chief Judge Cathy Bissoon granted a Motion to Dismiss the Third-Party Complaint filed against Lee Blankenship d/b/a L & D Trucking Co. and L & D Trucking Co., as Mr. Blankenship was the lead Plaintiff in the original action. The Court held that the attempted third-party joinder was procedurally improper under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 14(a)(1), reasoning that the plaintiff’s sole proprietorship is not a separate and distinct legal entity, which precludes third-party joinder of his business.
In reaching this conclusion, the Court took judicial notice of public records from the West Virginia Secretary of State attached to the Rule 12 motion establishing the business’s structure as a sole proprietorship. In a decisive ruling, the Court dismissed the Third-Party Complaint and denied leave to amend as futile, while noting that a comparative negligence defense remains available to the original defendants. The ruling reflects the strong procedural advocacy and careful legal analysis brought by Attorneys Zach Evans and Alex Protivnak in defending their clients against an improper federal pleading.
Read the five-page Order of Court here.
