Whitehead v. Universal Pictures
- Laura Swain
- 1:25-cv-05433
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Whitehead v. Universal Pictures, Chief Judge Swain ordered Whitehead to pay the filing fees or submit an IFP application within 30 days.
David Louis Whitehead, who must either pay the required fees or submit an application to proceed without prepaying them within 30 days to avoid dismissal without prejudice.
What happened
In Whitehead v. Universal Pictures, David Louis Whitehead filed a civil action without paying the required fees or submitting an application to proceed without prepaying them.
The court gave Whitehead 30 days to pay $405 in fees or submit a signed application to proceed without prepaying fees. The court said no summons would issue at that time.
Chief Judge Laura Taylor Swain ordered that the case be processed if Whitehead complies and dismissed without prejudice if he does not. She also denied payment-free status for any appeal from the order.
The detailed version
- Whitehead v. Universal Pictures · No. 1:25-cv-05433
- Laura Swain
- July 11, 2025
Background
David Louis Whitehead filed this civil action without a lawyer. He submitted the complaint without paying the required filing and administrative fees and without submitting an application to proceed without prepaying fees.
Fee or application requirement
The court explained that starting a civil action requires either payment of $405—consisting of a $350 filing fee and a $55 administrative fee—or a signed application requesting permission to proceed without prepaying the fees. The court ordered Whitehead to do one of those things within 30 days of the order. If he submits the application, it must identify docket number 25-CV-5433 (LTS).
Ruling and effect
Chief Judge Laura Taylor Swain ordered that no summons issue at that time. If Whitehead 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 without prejudice. The court also certified that an appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith and denied payment-free status for purposes of an appeal. The order does not decide the underlying claims against Universal Pictures or any other defendant.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.