Hoffman v. United Airlines Holdings Inc.
- Colleen McMahon
- 1:20-cv-08776
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Hoffman v. United Airlines, Judge McMahon ordered Hoffman to pay fees or submit an application to proceed without prepayment.
Chandel Richard Hoffman, whose case must meet the payment or fee-application requirement before it proceeds; the underlying claims against United Airlines Holdings, Inc. and the other defendants were not decided.
What happened
In Hoffman v. United Airlines Holdings, Inc., pro se plaintiff Chandel Richard Hoffman filed the action without paying the required fees or submitting an application to proceed without prepayment.
The court ordered Hoffman to pay $400 or submit a signed application within 30 days. The court said no summons would issue at that time and that an approved application would allow the case to proceed without prepaying fees.
Judge Colleen McMahon also denied fee-free status for any appeal from the order and stated that the action will be dismissed if Hoffman does not comply within the allowed time.
The detailed version
- Hoffman v. United Airlines Holdings Inc. · No. 1:20-cv-08776
- Colleen McMahon
- Oct. 30, 2020
Background
Chandel Richard Hoffman brought the action pro se, meaning without a lawyer. The complaint was submitted without the $400 required fees and without an application to proceed without prepayment of fees. Those fees consist of a $350 filing fee and a $50 administrative fee.
Order
The court ordered Hoffman, within 30 days of the order, to do one of two things: pay the $400 in fees or submit a signed application to proceed without prepayment of fees. If the court grants that application, Hoffman may proceed without paying the fees in advance. The court directed the Clerk of Court to mail the order to Hoffman and record service on the docket. No summons was to issue at that time.
The order states that the case will be processed under the Clerk's Office procedures if Hoffman complies. It also states that the action will be dismissed if Hoffman does not comply within the allowed period. The court certified that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-free status for purposes of an appeal.
Ruling and effect
Judge Colleen McMahon did not decide the underlying claims against United Airlines Holdings, Inc. or the other defendants. The order instead set the payment-or-application requirement for the case to proceed and specified the consequence of noncompliance.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.