Lewis v. Healy KIA

Background

Regina Lewis filed this civil action without paying the required filing fees and without submitting an application to proceed without prepaying them. The opinion states that Lewis is representing herself. It also states that she is barred from filing new civil actions in this court without prepayment of fees unless she first obtains permission from the court. Lewis requested that permission and included a copy of the relevant bar order, but she did not include an application to proceed without prepaying fees.

The court’s order

The court directed Lewis, within 30 days of the order, to do one of two things: pay $405 in fees, consisting of a $350 filing fee and a $55 administrative fee, or submit a signed application to proceed without prepaying fees. The application was to be labeled with docket number 24-CV-4504. If the court granted the application, Lewis would be allowed to proceed without paying the fees upfront.

The court ordered that no summons issue at that time. It stated that, if Lewis complied with the order, the case would be processed under the Clerk’s Office procedures; if she failed to comply within the allowed time, the action would be dismissed.

Appeal-related ruling and classification

The court certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees. This order concerns payment of filing fees and an application to proceed without prepayment, rather than the merits of Lewis’s claims. It is therefore a procedural order.