Elliott Williams v. Jeffrey Catoe, 946 F.3d 278

Elliott Williams, a state prisoner, sued prison officials under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 for deliberate indifference to serious medical needs and sought appointment of counsel while proceeding in forma pauperis.
The district court denied Williams’s motion to appoint counsel; Williams filed an interlocutory appeal contesting that denial.
The Fifth Circuit granted en banc review to revisit whether an interlocutory order denying appointed counsel in a § 1983 case is immediately appealable under the collateral-order doctrine, noting the panel decision in Robbins v. Maggio had previously allowed such appeals.
The court analyzed the Cohen/Coopers & Lybrand collateral-order three-part test and focused on the third prong (whether the denial is effectively unreviewable on appeal from a final judgment).
The en banc majority concluded the third prong is not satisfied: a pro se plaintiff can still appeal after final judgment, and the risk of multiplicity of interlocutory appeals counsels against immediate appealability.
The court overruled Robbins v. Maggio, held that interlocutory denials of appointed counsel in § 1983 cases are not immediately appealable, dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction, and limited the holding to § 1983 actions.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether an interlocutory denial of appointment of counsel in a § 1983 case is immediately appealable under the collateral-order doctrine	Robbins precedent permits immediate appeal; denial is effectively unreviewable because pro se litigants may abandon or settle rather than press merits	Collateral-order is narrow; denial is not effectively unreviewable because appeal after final judgment remains available and allowing interlocutory appeals would encourage multiplicity and disrupt final-judgment rule	Not immediately appealable; Robbins overruled; appeal dismissed for lack of jurisdiction
Whether stare decisis requires retention of Robbins	Williams relied on Robbins but conceded no reliance interest in keeping it	Numerous circuits hold denials non-appealable; practical and doctrinal reasons support overruling	Robbins overruled; no reliance interest prevented reversal

Cohen v. Beneficial Industrial Loan Corp., 337 U.S. 541 (1949) (origin of the collateral-order doctrine)
Coopers & Lybrand v. Livesay, 437 U.S. 463 (1978) (articulated three-part collateral-order test)
Digital Equipment Corp. v. Desktop Direct, Inc., 511 U.S. 863 (1994) (emphasized narrow scope of collateral-order doctrine)
Mohawk Industries, Inc. v. Carpenter, 558 U.S. 100 (2009) (explained limits on collateral-order expansion)
Robbins v. Maggio, 750 F.2d 405 (5th Cir. 1985) (prior Fifth Circuit panel decision allowing immediate appeal; overruled)
Ulmer v. Chancellor, 691 F.2d 209 (5th Cir. 1982) (standard for appointment of counsel in § 1983 cases)