Buxbaum v. Payward, Inc.
- Laura Swain
- 1:25-cv-00361
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Buxbaum v. Payward, Chief Judge Swain ordered the Clerk to return Buxbaum’s $405 payment because the action remained closed.
Michael Buxbaum, whose closed action against Payward, Inc. was not reopened and whose $405 money order was ordered returned; Payward, Inc. remains the defendant in the closed action.
What happened
In Buxbaum v. Payward, Inc., Michael Buxbaum filed the action without a lawyer. The court ordered him to either pay the required $405 filing fee or apply to proceed without prepaying fees, but he did neither, so the court dismissed the action and entered judgment.
The court later received Buxbaum’s $405 money order on May 1, 2025. Because the case had already been closed, the court directed the Clerk to return the money order rather than reopen the action.
Chief Judge Laura Taylor Swain stated that Buxbaum could pursue his claims by filing a new civil action and paying the filing fees within the required time. She also ruled that any appeal would not qualify for fee-free status because it would not be taken in good faith.
The detailed version
- Buxbaum v. Payward, Inc. · No. 1:25-cv-00361
- Laura Swain
- May 1, 2025
Background
Michael Buxbaum brought the action against Payward, Inc., doing business as Kraken, without a lawyer. On January 17, 2025, the court ordered Buxbaum to pay the $405 civil filing fee or submit an application to proceed without prepaying fees. Buxbaum did not comply with that order.
On March 12, 2025, the court dismissed the action, and the Clerk entered judgment on March 14, 2025. On May 1, 2025, the court received Buxbaum’s $405 money order.
Court’s Action
Because judgment had already been entered and the case was closed, the court directed the Clerk to return Buxbaum’s $405 money order. The court did not reopen the action. It stated that Buxbaum could pursue his claims by filing a new civil action and paying the filing fees within the required time.
The court also certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-free status for an appeal.
Disposition
The order directs the Clerk to return the $405 money order and states that the action remains closed. Judge Laura Taylor Swain issued the order as Chief United States District Judge.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.