Velazquez v. United States Department of Veterans Affairs
- Laura Swain
- 1:25-cv-06726
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In Velazquez v. United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Judge Swain ordered payment or a fee-waiver application within 30 days and said the case would be dismissed for noncompliance.
Ariel Lebron Velazquez must either pay the $405 in fees or submit the required application within 30 days. The case will be dismissed if Velazquez does not comply, and no summons will issue at this time.
What happened
In Velazquez v. United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Ariel Lebron Velazquez filed a complaint without paying the required fees or submitting an application to proceed without prepaying them. The order states that Velazquez is representing themself.
The court ordered Velazquez, within 30 days, either to pay $405 in filing and administrative fees or submit the attached application. No summons will issue at this time. If Velazquez does not comply within the deadline, the action will be dismissed; if Velazquez submits the application and the court grants it, the case may proceed without prepaying fees.
Chief United States District Judge Laura Taylor Swain also certified that an appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-waiver status for an appeal.
The detailed version
- Velazquez v. United States Department of Veterans Affairs · No. 1:25-cv-06726
- Laura Swain
- Aug. 21, 2025
Background
Ariel Lebron Velazquez brought this action pro se, meaning without a lawyer. The complaint was submitted without the required fees and without an application to proceed in forma pauperis (IFP), meaning to proceed without prepaying court fees.
The Court’s Order
The court explained that a civil action requires either payment of $405—comprising a $350 filing fee and a $55 administrative fee—or a signed IFP application under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1914 and 1915. The court gave Velazquez 30 days from the date of the order to pay the fees or submit the attached IFP application, labeled with docket number 25-CV-6726 (LTS).
If the court grants the IFP application, Velazquez may proceed without prepaying fees. No summons shall issue at this time. The action will be dismissed if Velazquez does not comply within the allowed period. The order does not decide the underlying claims against the United States Department of Veterans Affairs or the other defendants.
Appeal and Disposition
Judge Laura Taylor Swain certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied IFP status for purposes of an appeal. The order therefore directs payment of the fee or submission of an IFP application; it does not itself dismiss the action.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.