Lemberg v. San Francisco Opera Association
- Maxine Chesney
- 3:17-cv-06641
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 2
In Lemberg v. San Francisco Opera Association, Judge Chesney denied Lemberg’s request for government-paid hearing transcripts for her appeal.
Ann Marilyn Lemberg’s request for government-paid transcripts for her appeal was denied; the opinion states that San Francisco Opera Association did not file a response.
What happened
Lemberg asked the court to require the government to pay for transcripts of hearings in Lemberg v. San Francisco Opera Association. She said the transcripts were needed for her appeal from orders concerning a settlement and attorney’s fees.
The court explained that government payment for civil-case transcripts requires an appeal that is not frivolous and transcripts that are relevant and necessary. Although the court had allowed Lemberg to keep her status for purposes of appealing without paying filing fees, she did not explain why the requested transcripts were necessary or relevant. The orders she challenged were based on written submissions, not hearings, and the only reported proceedings were two earlier case-management conferences that did not address those issues.
Judge Maxine Chesney ruled that Lemberg had not shown she was entitled to government-paid transcripts and denied the motion.
The detailed version
- Lemberg v. San Francisco Opera Association · No. 3:17-cv-06641
- Maxine Chesney
- Mar. 5, 2021
Background
Plaintiff Ann Marilyn Lemberg filed a motion on February 26, 2021, asking the court to order payment, at government expense, for transcripts of hearings in this case. The defendant did not file a response. Lemberg was appealing orders entered on August 24, 2020, and September 4, 2020. Those orders granted the defendant’s motion to enforce a settlement and granted in part and denied in part the defendant’s request for attorney’s fees.
Legal standard
Under 28 U.S.C. § 753(f), the United States may pay transcript fees in a civil proceeding for a person allowed to appeal without paying fees if a trial judge or circuit judge certifies that the appeal is not frivolous and presents a substantial question. The court had previously declined, in an order filed October 2, 2020, to revoke Lemberg’s status for purposes of her appeal.
Court’s reasoning
The court nevertheless found that Lemberg had not provided a basis to show that the requested transcripts were necessary for, or relevant to, her appeal. The orders being appealed were resolved through the parties’ written submissions and without a hearing. The only reported proceedings were two case-management conferences, held on February 7, 2020, and May 29, 2020. Those conferences occurred before the challenged orders and did not address the issues resolved by them.
Disposition
The court concluded that Lemberg had not shown that she was entitled to obtain transcripts at government expense. Judge Maxine Chesney therefore denied the motion.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.