Thompson v. Backpage.com, L.L.C.
- John Koeltl
- 1:20-cv-06734
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Thompson v. Backpage.com, Judge McMahon ordered pro se remover James Larkin to pay fees or seek a fee waiver, or face remand.
James Larkin, who filed the notice of removal without a lawyer, had to pay the required fees or submit a signed fee-waiver application within 30 days to avoid remand.
What happened
In Thompson v. Backpage.com, defendant James Larkin tried to remove the case to federal court without a lawyer. The court said the party starting a civil case in federal court must pay $400 in fees or apply to proceed without paying them in advance.
The court gave Larkin 30 days to pay the fees or submit a signed application showing that he could not prepay them. If he did neither, the case would be sent back to the Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York. The clerk was directed to mail Larkin the order and record that service on the docket.
Judge Colleen McMahon also certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-waiver status for any appeal. The order did not decide the underlying claims.
The detailed version
- Thompson v. Backpage.com, L.L.C. · No. 1:20-cv-06734
- John Koeltl
- Sept. 14, 2020
Background
Defendant James Larkin filed a notice of removal without a lawyer. The opinion states that a party initiating a civil case in the district court must either pay $400 in fees—$350 for filing and $50 for administration—or submit a signed application to proceed without prepaying those fees. The court referred to this fee-waiver process as proceeding in forma pauperis, or IFP.
Larkin submitted neither the fees nor an IFP application.
Order
The court ordered Larkin, within 30 days of September 14, 2020, to do one of two things: pay the $400 in fees, or complete, sign, and submit the attached IFP application. If he submitted the application and the court granted it, he could proceed without prepaying the fees. The application was to identify docket number 20-CV-6734 (CM).
The clerk was directed to mail Larkin a copy of the order and record service on the docket. If Larkin complied, the case would be processed under the clerk's office procedures. If he failed to comply within the permitted time, the action would be remanded to the Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York. The opinion does not state that remand had already occurred.
Appeal and disposition
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 and denied IFP status for purposes of an appeal. The order addressed filing fees and access to the federal court; it did not decide the underlying claims. This is a procedural order.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.