Almayouf v. Abuzaid
- Laura Swain
- 1:25-cv-03183
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Almayouf v. Abuzaid, Judge Swain ordered the pro se plaintiff to pay fees or file a complete fee-waiver application within 30 days.
Danah Almayouf, the plaintiff proceeding without a lawyer; the action will not proceed unless she pays the required fees or submits a complete application within 30 days.
What happened
In Almayouf v. Abuzaid, Danah Almayouf filed the case without a lawyer and asked to proceed without paying court fees upfront. Her application was incomplete because she reported income from a business, profession, or other self-employment but did not provide the amount received or expected in the future.
The court gave Almayouf 30 days to pay $405 in fees or submit the attached, signed application to proceed without prepaying fees. No summons will issue for now. If she does not comply, the action will be dismissed without prejudice, meaning the order does not bar a later filing.
Judge Swain also ruled that any appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to proceed without paying fees for an appeal.
The detailed version
- Almayouf v. Abuzaid · No. 1:25-cv-03183
- Laura Swain
- Apr. 17, 2025
Background
Danah Almayouf brought this civil action without a lawyer. To proceed in the Southern District of New York, she had to pay $405 in court fees—$350 for filing and $55 for administration—or submit a signed application to proceed without prepaying fees, commonly called an application to proceed in forma pauperis.
Almayouf submitted an application with her complaint, but the court found it incomplete. She indicated that she had earned income from a “business, profession, or other self-employment,” but did not answer questions about the amount she had received or expected to receive in the future.
Order
The court ordered Almayouf, within 30 days of April 17, 2025, either to pay the $405 in fees or to submit the attached application. If she submits the application, it must identify docket number 25-CV-3183 (LTS).
The court directed that no summons issue at this time. If Almayouf complies, the Clerk’s Office will process the case under its procedures. If she does not comply within the permitted time, the action will be dismissed without prejudice.
Appeal
The court certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith. It therefore 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.