Calvino v. Salad
- Colleen McMahon
- 1:19-cv-11827
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In Calvino v. Salad, Judge McMahon dismissed the pro se action as frivolous and denied fee-free appeal status.
Ernest Calvino, Jr.’s action was dismissed, and he was denied fee-free status for an appeal. The order also repeated a warning about possible restrictions on future fee-free civil filings.
What happened
Ernest Calvino, Jr. sued Javier Salad and three other individuals, claiming they misled him, failed to support him, and failed to transfer an asset. He asked for money, an asset transfer, and justice.
The court found that the allegations were irrational and had no legal basis. It dismissed the action as frivolous, did not allow Calvino to amend the complaint, and repeated a warning about possible limits on future fee-free civil filings.
Judge Colleen McMahon also certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied Calvino fee-free status for an appeal.
The detailed version
- Calvino v. Salad · No. 1:19-cv-11827
- Colleen McMahon
- Jan. 7, 2020
Background
Ernest Calvino, Jr. brought this action against four individuals without a lawyer and asked to proceed without paying filing fees. The court had granted that request on January 7, 2020. Calvino invoked federal-question jurisdiction.
On the form complaint, Calvino described the alleged rights violations as “misleading the trues, lack of support, lack to transfer asset.” He later stated that the defendants claimed to support him in legal matters but that he had not seen their support and that they had misled him about transferring an asset. He requested money, transfer of an asset, and other monetary relief.
Court’s analysis
The court explained that it must dismiss a complaint filed without prepaying fees if it is frivolous, fails to state a claim, seeks money from an immune defendant, or falls outside the court’s subject-matter jurisdiction. A frivolous claim is one without an arguable legal or factual basis.
Although courts must read complaints filed by people without lawyers generously, the court found that Calvino’s claims were irrational and had no supporting legal theory. It also determined that the defects could not be fixed by amending the complaint.
Ruling
Judge Colleen McMahon dismissed the action as frivolous under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)(B). The court declined to give Calvino permission to amend the complaint. It also directed the Clerk of Court to mail him the order and record service on the docket.
The court repeated an earlier warning that further vexatious or frivolous litigation could lead to an order barring Calvino from filing new civil actions without paying fees unless he first received permission. The court certified that any appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-free status for an appeal.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.