Caldwell v. Smith-Williams
- Laura Swain
- 1:25-cv-07706
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Caldwell v. Smith-Williams, Chief Judge Swain ordered the pro se plaintiff to pay fees or apply to proceed without prepayment.
Boisey Caldwell must either pay $405 in fees or submit a signed application to proceed without prepayment within 30 days; otherwise, the action will be dismissed. No summons will issue at this time.
What happened
In Boisey Caldwell v. Quiana Smith-Williams, Caldwell filed a civil action without paying the required fees or submitting an application to proceed without prepayment because of inability to pay. The order does not address the underlying claims.
The court said Caldwell must, within 30 days, either pay $405 in filing and administrative fees or submit a signed application to proceed without prepayment. No summons will issue at this time.
The order states that the case will be processed if Caldwell complies and will be dismissed if Caldwell does not comply within the deadline. Chief United States District Judge Laura Taylor Swain also denied permission to proceed without prepayment for any appeal from this order.
The detailed version
- Caldwell v. Smith-Williams · No. 1:25-cv-07706
- Laura Swain
- Oct. 24, 2025
Background
Boisey Caldwell brought this civil action without a lawyer. Caldwell submitted the complaint without paying the required fees and without submitting an application to proceed without prepayment of fees.
Payment or application requirement
The court stated that filing a civil action requires payment of $405: a $350 filing fee and a $55 administrative fee. Instead of paying those fees, Caldwell may request permission to proceed without prepayment by submitting a signed application. The court gave Caldwell 30 days from the date of the order to pay the fees or submit the application, which should identify docket number 25-CV-7706 (LTS).
Ruling and effect
The court directed Caldwell to pay the fees or submit the application. No summons will issue at this time. If Caldwell complies, the case will be processed under the Clerk’s Office procedures; if Caldwell does not comply within the allowed time, the action will be dismissed. The court also certified that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to proceed without prepayment for purposes of an appeal. Chief United States District Judge Laura Taylor Swain did not decide the merits of Caldwell’s claims.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.