Brown v. Ferguson
- Laura Swain
- 1:25-cv-05066
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 6
In Brown v. Ferguson, Chief Judge Swain ordered Brown to refile his complaint and fee application without his address or face dismissal.
Kurell Brown must resubmit his complaint and amended fee application without his mailing address, complete the electronic-service consent form or receive orders by mail, and comply within 30 days to avoid dismissal of the action.
What happened
In Brown v. Ferguson, Kurell Brown filed a complaint without a lawyer and asked to proceed without paying court fees upfront. He also asked the court to keep his mailing address off the public docket.
The court directed Brown to submit a replacement complaint omitting his mailing address, complete an electronic-service consent form, and file a signed amended fee application with the missing financial information. The court restricted access to the original filings and directed the Clerk’s Office to replace the complaint when the new one is filed.
Within 30 days, Brown must submit the required documents. Judge Laura Taylor Swain stated that the action will be dismissed if Brown does not file a completed amended fee application on time; no summons will issue yet, and fee-waiver status was denied for any appeal from this order.
The detailed version
- Brown v. Ferguson · No. 1:25-cv-05066
- Laura Swain
- July 29, 2025
Background
Kurell Brown initiated the action without a lawyer by submitting a complaint and an application to proceed without prepaying filing fees. The complaint and fee application included Brown’s mailing address. Brown asked that the address be omitted from the public docket. He provided an email address but had not completed a consent form allowing electronic service.
The Clerk’s Office opened the case but restricted electronic access to the complaint and fee application. Brown’s fee application stated that he had submitted a financial affidavit, but the affidavit was not included.
Court’s directives
The court directed Brown, within 30 days of the order, to:
- resubmit his complaint without his mailing address so it can be placed on the public docket; - complete the attached consent to electronic service, or receive court orders by mail instead; - complete, sign, and file the attached amended application to proceed without prepaying fees or costs, also omitting his mailing address; and - label the replacement complaint and amended fee application with docket number 25-CV-5066 (LTS).
The Clerk’s Office was directed to replace the restricted complaint with the replacement complaint. The court explained that, if it grants the amended fee application, Brown may proceed without prepaying fees. If Brown does not file a completed amended fee application within the allowed time, the action will be dismissed. No summons will issue at this time.
Disposition
Judge Laura Taylor Swain did not decide the underlying claims. The order directs Brown to correct and resubmit his filings. The court also certified that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-waiver status for purposes of an appeal.
Read the full 6-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.