Adrian Hall, Jr. v. Jhon Doe #1, et al.
- Laura Swain
- 1:26-cv-05723
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In Adrian Hall, Jr. v. Jhon Doe #1, Chief Judge Swain ordered Hall to pay fees or submit prisoner authorization within 30 days.
Adrian Hall, Jr., a prisoner proceeding without a lawyer, must either pay the required fees or submit the required prisoner authorization within 30 days to avoid dismissal of the action.
What happened
Adrian Hall, Jr. v. Jhon Doe #1, et al. is a lawsuit brought by Hall, who is incarcerated at Upstate Correctional Facility and is representing himself. Hall submitted an application to proceed without paying fees upfront, but he did not submit the required prisoner authorization.
The court ordered Hall, within 30 days, either to pay $405 in fees or to submit the authorization. The authorization would allow installment deductions of the $350 filing fee from his prison account and provide the court with his recent account statements. No summons will issue yet, and the action will be dismissed if Hall does not comply within the deadline.
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 appeal without prepaying fees. This order addresses filing requirements and does not decide the underlying claims.
The detailed version
- Adrian Hall, Jr. v. Jhon Doe #1, et al. · No. 1:26-cv-05723
- Laura Swain
- July 20, 2026
Background
Adrian Hall, Jr., who is incarcerated at Upstate Correctional Facility, filed this action without a lawyer. He submitted an application to proceed in forma pauperis (IFP), meaning he sought to proceed without paying filing fees upfront. He did not submit the separate prisoner authorization required for a prisoner seeking IFP status.
Order
The court explained that a prisoner must either pay $405 in fees—a $350 filing fee and a $55 administrative fee—or submit a signed IFP application and prisoner authorization. If IFP status is granted, the Prison Litigation Reform Act requires the $350 filing fee to be collected in installments from the prisoner's account. The authorization also directs the facility to send the court certified account statements for the previous six months.
The court ordered Hall to do one of two things within 30 days of the order: pay the $405 in fees or complete and submit the attached prisoner authorization, labeled with docket number 1:26-CV-5723 (LTS). No summons will issue at this time. If Hall complies, the Clerk's Office will process the case under its procedures. If he does not comply within the deadline, the action will be dismissed.
Appeal and effect
The court certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that an appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith and denied IFP status for purposes of an appeal. The order does not address the merits of Hall's claims against the defendants. Chief United States District Judge Laura Taylor Swain signed the order on July 20, 2026.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.