Vakeaton v. The National Basketball Players Association
- Laura Swain
- 1:26-cv-05703
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In Wafer Q. Vakeaton v. National Basketball Players Association, Judge Swain ordered payment or an IFP application before the case proceeds.
Wafer Q. Vakeaton, who must pay the required fees or submit an IFP application within 30 days for the action to proceed.
What happened
Wafer Q. Vakeaton filed this action against The National Basketball Players Association without paying the required fees or submitting an application to proceed without paying them in advance. The July 20, 2026 order did not address the lawsuit’s underlying claims.
The court gave Vakeaton 30 days to either pay $405 in filing and administrative fees or submit a signed application to proceed without prepaying fees. No summons will issue yet. If the application is granted, Vakeaton may proceed without paying the fees in advance; if Vakeaton does not comply on time, the action will be dismissed.
Chief United States District Judge Laura Taylor Swain also ruled that any appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to proceed without prepaying fees for an appeal.
The detailed version
- Vakeaton v. The National Basketball Players Association · No. 1:26-cv-05703
- Laura Swain
- July 20, 2026
Background
Wafer Q. Vakeaton filed the action without paying the required fees and without submitting an application to proceed without prepaying fees, commonly called an IFP application. The opinion does not describe the underlying claims.
Order
The court ordered Vakeaton, within 30 days of the order, to do one of two things:
1. Pay $405, consisting of a $350 filing fee and a $55 administrative fee; or 2. Submit a signed IFP application labeled with docket number 1:26-CV-5703.
If the court grants the IFP application, Vakeaton may proceed without paying the fees in advance. No summons will issue at this time. If Vakeaton complies, the Clerk’s Office will process the case under its procedures. If Vakeaton does not comply within the allowed time, the action will be dismissed.
Appeal
Chief United States District Judge Laura Taylor Swain certified that an appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith. The court therefore denied IFP status for purposes of an appeal.
Disposition
The court entered an order directing payment of the fee or submission of an IFP application. It did not rule on the underlying claims.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.