Breenan v. Walsh
- Kenneth Karas
- 7:25-cv-01173
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Breenan v. Walsh, Judge Swain ordered Matthew I. Breenan to pay $405 or submit an application to proceed without prepaying fees within 30 days.
Matthew I. Breenan and the progress of his civil action. The case will not proceed until the required fees are paid or a completed and signed application to proceed without prepaying fees is received.
What happened
In Breenan v. Walsh, Matthew I. Breenan submitted this civil action by email. The court said he had to either pay $405 in fees or submit a signed application to proceed without paying the fees in advance.
The court gave Breenan 30 days from February 13, 2025, to comply or request more time. Until payment or a completed application was received, the case would not move forward, and the court would not issue a summons or require an answer. If he did not comply, the action would be dismissed without prejudice to refiling.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain also denied permission to proceed without prepaying fees for any appeal from this order, after certifying that such an appeal would not be taken in good faith.
The detailed version
- Breenan v. Walsh · No. 7:25-cv-01173
- Kenneth Karas
- Feb. 13, 2025
Background
Matthew I. Breenan submitted this civil action to the Southern District of New York by email. The order does not describe the underlying claims.
Fee or application requirement
The court explained that a plaintiff beginning a civil action must either pay the required fees or submit a signed application to proceed without prepaying them. The order identified the total fees as $405, consisting of a $350 filing fee and a $55 administrative fee.
The court ordered Breenan, within 30 days of the order, to either pay the fees or complete, sign, and submit the attached application. The order specified accepted payment methods and instructions. No further action would be taken, no summons would issue, and no answer would be required until the court received payment or a completed and signed application. If Breenan complied, the case would be processed under the Clerk’s Office procedures. If the court granted the application, he would be permitted to proceed without prepaying fees.
Disposition
The court ordered the fee-or-application requirement and stated that failure to comply, or failure to request an extension, would result in dismissal without prejudice to refiling. Judge Laura Taylor Swain also certified that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to proceed without prepaying fees for an appeal.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.