Modica v. New York City Department of Education
- Jesse Furman
- 1:20-cv-04834
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Modica v. Department of Education, Judge McMahon ordered the plaintiff to pay $400 or request permission to proceed without prepaying fees within 30 days.
Mary Elizabeth Modica, who was required to pay the filing and administrative fees or submit an IFP application within 30 days for the action to proceed.
What happened
In Modica v. New York City Department of Education, Mary Elizabeth Modica filed the action without paying the required fees or submitting an application to proceed without prepaying them. The order states that Modica was representing herself.
The court gave Modica 30 days to pay $400 or submit a signed application for permission to proceed without prepaying fees. No summons would be issued at that time, and the action would be dismissed if she did not comply.
Chief Judge Colleen McMahon issued the order. She also denied permission to proceed without prepaying fees for any appeal and certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith.
The detailed version
- Modica v. New York City Department of Education · No. 1:20-cv-04834
- Jesse Furman
- July 7, 2020
Background
Mary Elizabeth Modica brought the action without a lawyer. She submitted a complaint but did not pay the required filing and administrative fees and did not submit an application to proceed without prepaying fees.
Order
The court explained that starting a civil action required either payment of $400—$350 for the filing fee and $50 for the administrative fee—or a signed application to proceed without prepayment of fees, commonly called an IFP application. The court ordered Modica, within 30 days of the order, to pay the $400 or submit the attached IFP application labeled with docket number 20-CV-4834 (CM).
The order did not grant the IFP application. It stated that, if the court later granted the application, Modica would be allowed to proceed without prepaying fees. No summons would issue at that time. If Modica failed to comply within the 30-day period, the action would be dismissed. The Clerk of Court was directed to mail the order to her and record service on the docket.
Appeal
Chief United States District Judge Colleen McMahon certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith. The court therefore denied permission to proceed without prepaying fees for purposes of an appeal.
Disposition
The court directed payment of the required fees or submission of an IFP application; it did not issue a summons or decide the underlying claims.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.