In Kuperman v. New York City Department of Education, 2020 WL 5123398 (S.D.N.Y. August 28, 2020), the court dismissed plaintiff’s race and religion-based claims of discrimination against the New York City Department of Education, finding that the NYCDOE was not a proper party.
From the decision:
Plaintiff’s claims against the New York City Department of Education must be dismissed. Agencies of the City of New York generally cannot be sued in their own names and must instead be sued in the name of the City of New York. See N.Y. City Charter ch. 17, § 396 (“[A]ll actions and proceedings for the recovery of penalties for the violation of any law shall be brought in the name of the city of New York and not in that of any agency, except where otherwise provided by law.”); Jenkins v. City of New York, 478 F.3d 76, 93 n.19 (2d Cir. 2007); see also Emerson v. City of New York, 740 F. Supp. 2d 385, 396 (S.D.N.Y. 2010) (“[A] plaintiff is generally prohibited from suing a municipal agency.”).
In light of plaintiff’s pro se status, the court construed plaintiff’s complaint as asserting the City of New York, and directed the Clerk of Court to amend the action’s caption accordingly, pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 21 (without prejudice to whatever defenses the City of New York may wish to assert).