Douglas

I. BACKGROUND

21 Plaintiffs filed this lawsuit on October 18, 2021. (ECF No. 1). On January 24, 2022, they 22 filed a proof of service of summons as to Defendant Modesto Police Department (Defendant), 23 which states that Defendant was personally served via a records supervisor on December 29, 24 2021. (ECF No. 15). On March 7, 2022, Plaintiffs moved for default judgment as to Defendant, 25

1 A motion for default judgment is considered a dispositive matter that requires the issuance of findings and recommendations. See Livingston v. Art.com, Inc., No. 3:13-CV-03748-CRB, 2015 WL 4307808, at *2 (N.D. Cal. July 15, 2015). asserting that Defendant was properly served and has failed to timely answer.2 (ECF No. 29). II. ANALYSIS Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 55(b)(2), a plaintiff may apply to the court for a default judgment when a defendant has failed to plead or otherwise defend. “Before assessing the merits of a default judgment,” a court must address certain preliminary issues. Forestiere v. Bazzi, No. 20-cv-03543-DMR, 2021 WL 2638052, at *2 (N.D. Cal. June 8, 2021), report and recommendation adopted, No. 20-CV-03543-WHO, 2021 WL…