Emm v. Green Things Landscaping LLC
- Laura Swain
- 1:25-cv-05768
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In Emm v. Green Things Landscaping LLC, Chief Judge Swain ordered fees or fee-waiver applications from two plaintiffs and dismissed the company’s claims without prejudice to retaining counsel.
Jacquelyn Emm and Sergio Brooks must pay the required fees or separately submit applications to proceed without prepayment of fees. Green Things Landscaping LLC’s claims were dismissed without prejudice to retaining counsel.
What happened
In Emm v. Green Things Landscaping LLC, Jacquelyn Emm, Sergio Brooks, and Green Things Landscaping LLC filed a civil action without paying the required fees or submitting applications to waive them. The plaintiffs were proceeding without lawyers.
The court gave Emm and Brooks 30 days to either pay $405 in filing and administrative fees or each submit an application to proceed without prepaying those fees. The court also ruled that Green Things, a company, cannot represent itself without a licensed lawyer.
The court dismissed Green Things’ claims without prejudice to the company retaining counsel and directed Emm and Brooks to comply with the fee requirement. Chief Judge Laura Taylor Swain stated that no summons would issue at that time and that the action would be dismissed if Emm and Brooks failed to comply.
The detailed version
- Emm v. Green Things Landscaping LLC · No. 1:25-cv-05768
- Laura Swain
- July 23, 2025
Background
Jacquelyn Emm, Sergio Brooks, and Green Things Landscaping LLC brought this action without lawyers against Tramz Hotel Group, LLC, Grapnel LLC, and Tarunnum Murad Irrevocable Trust I. Emm and Brooks submitted the complaint without paying the required fees and without submitting applications to proceed without prepayment of fees. Green Things is an artificial entity and therefore cannot proceed without a licensed attorney.
Fees
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 to proceed without prepayment of fees, commonly called an IFP application. Within 30 days of the order, Emm and Brooks were required either to pay the $405 or each submit an IFP application labeled with docket number 25-CV-5768. If the court grants those applications, they may proceed without prepaying the fees.
Green Things’ Claims
The court held that corporations and other artificial entities cannot represent themselves in federal court. It dismissed the claims brought on behalf of Green Things without prejudice to Green Things retaining counsel.
Disposition
The court directed Emm and Brooks to comply with the fee requirement and stated that no summons would issue at that time. If they failed to comply within the allowed period, the action would be dismissed. The court also certified that any appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-waiver status for purposes of an appeal.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.