Johnson v. Zuckerberg
- Martinez-Olguin
- 3:23-cv-03910
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 3
In Johnson v. Zuckerberg, Judge Martinez-Olguin granted Johnson fee-waiver status but denied counsel without prejudice because the case was too early to assess.
Tyler D. Johnson may proceed without prepaying the full filing fee, but he remains responsible for the $350.00 fee through the payment process described in the order. His request for appointed counsel was denied without prejudice. The prison trust account office and the court’s financial office were directed to receive or process the payment instructions.
What happened
In Johnson v. Zuckerberg, Tyler D. Johnson asked to proceed without paying the full court filing fee upfront and asked the court to appoint a lawyer. The court granted his request to proceed without prepaying the fee and set his initial partial payment at $0.00, while stating that the total filing fee is $350.00.
The court said it would review Johnson’s complaint in a separate order. It also explained that appointing a lawyer in a civil case requires exceptional circumstances, including a likely chance of success and whether the person can explain his claims without a lawyer. Because the case was at an early stage, the court could not yet assess those circumstances.
Judge Araceli Martinez-Olguin denied Johnson’s request for appointed counsel without prejudice, meaning the request may be made again. The order granted the fee request, denied the counsel request, and terminated both motions; it did not rule on the complaint’s claims.
The detailed version
- Johnson v. Zuckerberg · No. 3:23-cv-03910
- Martinez-Olguin
- Jan. 2, 2024
Background
Tyler D. Johnson applied to proceed without prepaying the full filing fee and separately moved for appointment of counsel. The opinion identifies Mark Zuckerberg and others as defendants. The court stated that it would review Johnson’s complaint under 28 U.S.C. § 1915 in a separate written order.
Fee ruling
The court granted Johnson’s application to proceed without prepaying the filing fee. It stated that the total filing fee is $350.00 and that Johnson’s initial partial filing fee is $0.00. The attached instructions provide for later installment payments from the prisoner trust account, including monthly deductions when the account exceeds $10.00, until the fee is paid in full.
Counsel ruling
The court explained that a civil litigant generally has no constitutional right to appointed counsel unless losing the case could result in loss of physical liberty. Under 28 U.S.C. § 1915, the court may seek volunteer counsel for an indigent litigant only in “exceptional circumstances.” That assessment considers both the likelihood of success on the merits and the litigant’s ability to explain the claims without a lawyer, considering the complexity of the legal issues.
The court said it could not assess those circumstances because the proceedings were at an early stage and it was premature to determine Johnson’s likelihood of success. It therefore denied Johnson’s request for appointment of counsel without prejudice. The court stated that it could appoint counsel later on its own initiative if it concluded that appointment was necessary.
Disposition
Judge Araceli Martinez-Olguin granted the application to proceed without prepaying the filing fee and denied the motion for appointment of counsel without prejudice. The order terminated Docket Nos. 2 and 7. The opinion did not decide the claims in Johnson’s complaint.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.