Cruz Molina v. Mr. Vu and Associates
- Laura Swain
- 1:25-cv-04369
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 1
In Cruz Molina v. Mr. Vu and Associates, Chief Judge Swain dismissed the complaint without prejudice because required filing steps were not completed.
The dismissal affected Serbando Cruz Molina's complaint against Mr. Vu and Associates. The complaint was dismissed without prejudice because Cruz Molina neither submitted the required application to proceed without paying fees nor paid the $405 filing fee.
What happened
In Serbando Cruz Molina v. Mr. Vu and Associates, the court had ordered the plaintiff to submit an application to proceed without paying fees or pay the required $405 filing fee within 30 days.
The plaintiff did neither. The court therefore dismissed the complaint without prejudice, meaning it was not permanently barred from being filed again.
Chief Judge Swain also denied the plaintiff permission to appeal without paying fees, finding that any appeal would not be taken in good faith, and directed the Clerk of Court to enter judgment.
The detailed version
- Cruz Molina v. Mr. Vu and Associates · No. 1:25-cv-04369
- Laura Swain
- July 10, 2025
Background
By an order dated May 28, 2025, the Court directed Serbando Cruz Molina, within 30 days, either to submit a completed application to proceed without paying filing fees or to pay the $405 required to file a civil action. The order warned that failing to comply would result in dismissal of the complaint.
The opinion states that Cruz Molina did not submit the application or pay the fees. A footnote also states that he did not provide an address of record for mailing or consent to electronic service.
Ruling
The Court dismissed the complaint without prejudice under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1914 and 1915. It 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 permission to appeal without paying filing fees. The Court directed the Clerk of Court to enter judgment.
Read the full 1-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.