UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

CIVIL MINUTES—GENERAL

Case No. 8:25-cv-01913-KES Date: September 8, 2025

Titles: Aziz Alidzhanov, et al. v. Kristi Noem, et al.

PRESENT:

THE HONORABLE KAREN E. SCOTT, U.S. MAGISTRATE JUDGE

Jazmin Dorado Not Present Courtroom Clerk Court Reporter

ATTORNEYS PRESENT FOR ATTORNEYS PRESENT FOR

PLAINTIFF: DEFENDANTS:

None Present None Present

PROCEEDINGS (IN CHAMBERS): Order to Show Cause Why Application of Non-Resident Attorney to Appear Pro Hac Vice (Dkt. 9) Should Not Be Denied Under Local Rule 83-2.1.3.2(c).

This Court orders Plaintiffs Aziz Alidzhanov, et al. (“Plaintiffs”) to show cause why the application of non-resident attorney Sadaf F. Ahmed (“Ms. Ahmed”) to appear pro hac vice in Case No. 8:25-cv-01913-KES should not be denied under Local Rule 83-2.1.3.2(c), which states the following: “Unless authorized by the Constitution of the United States or Acts of Congress, an applicant is not eligible for permission to practice pro hac vice if the applicant ... is regularly engaged in business, professional, or other similar activities in California.” L.R. 83-2.1.3.2(c). In 2018, Judge Percy Anderson of the Central District of California (“District”) denied a pro hac vice application under Local Rule 83-2.1.3.2(c) when the attorney had already appeared pro hac vice five times in the District within the prior three years. Kerstein v. Antelope Valley Hosp., No. CV 18-8960 PA (JPRx), 2018 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 231347, at *1, *3 (C.D. Cal. Dec. 13, 2018). Accordingly, five or more pro hac vice appearances within a three-year period can constitute “regular[] engage[ment] in business, professional, or other similar activities in California.” Id. at *3 (quoting L.R. 83-2.1.3.2(c)). On August 29, 2025, Ms. Ahmed applied for permission to appear pro hac vice in this District. (Dkt. 9.) By her own admission, she has been granted pro hac vice status in ten cases in the District from 2023 to the present. (Id. at 2-3.) However, Local Rule 83-2.1.3.2(c) considers

CIVIL MINUTES—GENERAL

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appearances not just in this District but within the state of California. This Court’s research indicates that, within the last three years, Ms. Ahmed has appeared pro hac vice in at least the following twenty-eight cases:  Central District of California: o 2:23-cv-02985-GW-SK o 2:23-cv-03943-WLH-PD o 8:23-cv-00129-FWS-DFM o 8:23-cv-01158-CJC-JDE o 2:24-cv-00618-JLS-AJR o 2:24-cv-04932-MWF-SK o 2:24-cv-10983-HDV-SK o 8:24-cv-01329-CV-JC o 8:24-cv-01417-DFM o 8:24-cv-01424-FWS-JDE o 2:25-cv-02457-DSF-MBK o 2:25-cv-05607-AH-MBK o 5:25-cv-00056-SHK o 5:25-cv-01154-SSS-DTB o 8:25-cv-01332-JWH-DFM  Northern District of California: o 3:23-cv-05098 o 4:24-cv-02583 o 5:24-cv-04430 o 5:24-cv-07248

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o 5:24-cv-08435 o 5:24-cv-09464 o 3:25-cv-04512 o 3:25-cv-07046 o 5:25-cv-04400 o 5:25-cv-05889  Southern District of California: o 3:23-cv-00556 o 3:24-cv-00424 o 3:24-cv-00724 Plaintiffs are therefore ORDERED, on or before September 22, 2025, to show cause why Ms. Ahmed is not “regularly engaged in business, professional, or other similar activities in California” and should not have her application to appear pro hac vice denied under Local Rule 83-2.1.3.2(c). Any response to this order shall identify Ms. Ahmed’s appearances in California state court in the last three years, as well as any other California federal court appearances in the last three years that this Court has not found.

Initials of Deputy Clerk jd