Okafor v. HEI HOTELS
- Laura Swain
- 1:25-cv-05038
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Okafor v. HEI HOTELS, Judge Swain ordered payment or an application to proceed without fees within 30 days, or the action will be dismissed.
Chisom Okafor, who must pay the required fees or submit a signed IFP application within 30 days to avoid dismissal of the action.
What happened
In Okafor v. HEI HOTELS, Chisom Okafor filed a civil action without paying the required fees or submitting an application to proceed without paying them upfront. The opinion does not address the underlying claims.
The court gave Okafor 30 days from June 18, 2025, to pay $405 in fees or submit a signed application to proceed without prepaying fees. No summons will issue yet. If Okafor does not comply, the action will be dismissed.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain also denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees, certifying that an appeal would not be taken in good faith.
The detailed version
- Okafor v. HEI HOTELS · No. 1:25-cv-05038
- Laura Swain
- June 18, 2025
Background
Chisom Okafor filed this civil action pro se, meaning without a lawyer. Okafor submitted the complaint without paying the required filing fees and without submitting an application to proceed in forma pauperis (IFP), which means proceeding without prepaying court fees.
Order
The court explained that the required fees total $405: a $350 filing fee and a $55 administrative fee. Within 30 days of the order, Okafor must either pay the $405 or submit a signed IFP application labeled with docket number 1:25-CV-5038 (LTS). If the court grants the IFP application, Okafor may proceed without prepaying the fees.
No summons will issue at this time. The case will be processed under the Clerk’s Office procedures if Okafor complies. If Okafor does not comply within the allowed time, the action will be dismissed.
Appeal-related ruling
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 IFP status for purposes of an appeal.
Disposition
Judge Laura Taylor Swain entered an order directing Okafor either to pay the fees or submit an IFP application. The opinion did not decide the underlying claims.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.