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S.D.N.Y.Procedural orderFiled Jan. 26, 2021

McIver v. Service@dreamstudiogroup.com

Judge
Colleen McMahon
Docket
1:21-cv-00642
Court
U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
Pages
2
Civil ProcedurePro Se
In one sentence

In McIver v. Service@dreamstudiogroup.com, Judge McMahon ordered payment or an application to proceed without paying fees within 30 days and postponed summons issuance.

Who this affects

Tamicko Murray McIver, who must either pay the required fees or submit an application to proceed without prepaying them within 30 days to avoid dismissal under the order.

What happened

In McIver v. Service@dreamstudiogroup.com, Tamicko Murray McIver filed the case without paying the required fees or submitting an application to proceed without paying them. The order does not address the claims’ merits.

The court gave McIver 30 days to pay $402 in filing and administrative fees or submit a signed application to proceed without prepaying fees. No summons would be issued at that time. The order states that the action would be dismissed if McIver did not comply.

Judge Colleen McMahon directed the Clerk of Court to mail the order to McIver and record service on the docket. She also ruled that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees.

The detailed version

For law students, journalists, and other readers who want the full reasoning

Case
McIver v. Service@dreamstudiogroup.com · No. 1:21-cv-00642
Judge
Colleen McMahon
Date
Jan. 26, 2021

Background

Tamicko Murray McIver brought this civil action without a lawyer. The complaint was submitted without the required fees and without an application to proceed without prepaying fees. The order does not discuss the substance of McIver’s claims.

Payment or fee-waiver application

The court explained that starting a civil action required either payment of $402—consisting of a $350 filing fee and a $52 administrative fee—or submission of a signed application to proceed without prepaying fees, commonly called an in forma pauperis or IFP application. The court ordered McIver, within 30 days of the order, to take one of those two steps. If the court grants the application, McIver may proceed without prepaying the fees.

Ruling and next steps

The court directed the Clerk of Court to mail the order to McIver and note service on the docket. No summons would issue at that time. The order states that the action would be processed under the Clerk’s procedures if McIver complied, but would be dismissed if McIver did not comply within the allowed time. Judge Colleen McMahon also certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees. The order therefore addressed filing requirements and appeal-fee status, not the merits of the case.

The authoritative version

Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.

Open opinion PDF →
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