Thomas v. Moore
- Laura Swain
- 1:25-cv-03962
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Thomas v. Moore, Judge Swain ordered Matthew Thomas to pay fees or submit prisoner authorization within 30 days.
Matthew Thomas, a self-represented incarcerated plaintiff who seeks to proceed without paying court fees upfront; the action against William Moore and Frank Torre is also affected because it will be dismissed if Thomas does not comply with the order.
What happened
In Thomas v. Moore, Matthew Thomas, who is incarcerated at Dutchess County Jail and is representing himself, sued William Moore and Frank Torre. He submitted an application to proceed without paying court fees upfront but did not submit the required prisoner authorization.
The court ordered Thomas, within 30 days, either to pay $405 in fees or complete and submit the prisoner authorization. That authorization would allow installment deductions from his account for the $350 filing fee and provide six months of account statements. The court will not issue summonses yet, and the action will be dismissed if Thomas does not comply.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain also ruled that an appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-waiver status for an appeal. The order did not decide the underlying claims against Moore or Torre.
The detailed version
- Thomas v. Moore · No. 1:25-cv-03962
- Laura Swain
- May 14, 2025
Background
Matthew Thomas, who is incarcerated at Dutchess County Jail, brought this civil action against William Moore and Frank Torre while representing himself. To proceed without paying court fees upfront, a prisoner must submit an application to proceed without prepayment of fees and a prisoner authorization. The authorization permits the facility holding the prisoner to deduct the filing fee from the prisoner's account in installments and requires certified account statements for the previous six months.
Thomas submitted the application to proceed without prepayment of fees but did not submit the prisoner authorization.
Order
The court ordered Thomas, within 30 days of May 14, 2025, to do one of two things: pay $405 in fees, consisting of a $350 filing fee and a $55 administrative fee, or complete and submit the attached prisoner authorization labeled with docket number 25-CV-3962 (LTS). The court explained that the $55 administrative fee does not apply to a person granted permission to proceed without prepayment of fees.
No summons will issue at this time. If Thomas complies, the case will be processed under the Clerk's Office procedures. If he does not comply within the allowed time, the action will be dismissed. The court also cautioned that certain dismissals of prisoner cases can count as strikes under the Prison Litigation Reform Act.
Appeal ruling and significance
The court certified that any appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to proceed without prepayment of fees for purposes of an appeal. The order addressed filing requirements and did not decide the merits of Thomas's claims against Moore or Torre.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.