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S.D.N.Y.Procedural orderFiled June 18, 2025

Phipps v. Experian Information Solutions, Inc.

Judge
Laura Swain
Docket
1:25-cv-04754
Court
U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
Pages
2
Civil ProcedurePro Se
In one sentence

In Phipps v. Experian, Judge Swain ordered Derrick Phipps to pay $405 or submit a fee-waiver application within 30 days.

Who this affects

Derrick Phipps, who must either pay the required fees or submit a signed application to proceed without prepaying them; Experian Information Solutions, Inc., whose case will not be processed further at this stage unless Phipps complies.

What happened

In Phipps v. Experian Information Solutions, Inc., Derrick Phipps filed a civil lawsuit without paying the required fees or submitting an application to proceed without prepaying them. The opinion says he was representing himself.

The court ordered Phipps, within 30 days, either to pay $405 or submit a signed application to proceed without prepaying fees. No summons will issue at this time, and the case will be processed if he complies. The order states that the action will be dismissed if he does not comply within the allowed time.

Judge Laura Taylor Swain issued the order on June 18, 2025. She also ruled that Phipps could not proceed without prepaying fees for an appeal from this order because such an appeal would not be taken in good faith.

The detailed version

For law students, journalists, and other readers who want the full reasoning

Case
Phipps v. Experian Information Solutions, Inc. · No. 1:25-cv-04754
Judge
Laura Swain
Date
June 18, 2025

Background

Derrick Phipps brought this civil action against Experian Information Solutions, Inc. The opinion states that Phipps is proceeding pro se, meaning without a lawyer. He submitted his complaint without paying the required fees and without an application to proceed in forma pauperis (IFP), which allows a qualifying person to proceed without prepaying court fees.

Order

The court explained that commencing a civil action in the Southern District of New York requires payment of $405: a $350 filing fee and a $55 administrative fee. Within 30 days after the order, Phipps must either pay the $405 or submit a signed IFP application labeled with docket number 1:25-CV-4754 (LTS). If the court grants the application, Phipps may proceed without prepaying the fees.

No summons will issue at this time. If Phipps complies, the case will be processed under the Clerk’s Office procedures. If he does not comply within the permitted time, the action will be dismissed.

Appeal-related ruling

Judge Swain certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that an appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith. The court therefore denied IFP status for purposes of an appeal.

What the order did not decide

The opinion does not decide the merits of Phipps’s claims against Experian. It addresses only the required payment or IFP application and related case-processing matters.

The authoritative version

Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.

Open opinion PDF →
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