KALARICKAL v. United States
- Denise Cote
- 1:21-cv-01043
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In KALARICKAL v. United States, Judge Gardephe required pro se plaintiff Alexander Kalarickal to pay fees after finding his application inadequate.
Alexander Kalarickal, who was required to pay the $400 filing and administrative fees or face dismissal of the action if he failed to comply within 30 days.
What happened
In KALARICKAL v. United States, Alexander Kalarickal sued the United States and asked to proceed without paying the filing fees upfront. He was representing himself.
The court explained that a civil case requires payment of $400 or a signed application showing that the plaintiff cannot afford the fees. Kalarickal’s amended application stated that his income exceeded $60,000, so it did not show that he was unable to pay.
Judge Paul G. Gardephe ordered Kalarickal to pay the $400 within 30 days. The court warned that the action would be dismissed if he did not comply and denied fee-free status for any appeal from the order.
The detailed version
- KALARICKAL v. United States · No. 1:21-cv-01043
- Denise Cote
- Mar. 1, 2021
Background
Alexander Kalarickal brought this action against the United States while proceeding without a lawyer. To begin a civil case in the district court, a plaintiff must either pay $400 in filing and administrative fees or request permission to proceed without prepaying those fees through a signed application.
Kalarickal’s earlier application to proceed without prepaying fees had been denied by the Court of Federal Claims before that matter was transferred to the Southern District of New York. On February 10, 2021, this court ordered him to pay the $400 within 30 days. He then submitted an application on February 24 and an amended application on February 25.
Court’s action
The court found that the amended application did not establish that Kalarickal was unable to pay the fees. The application stated that his income was more than $60,000, which indicated that he appeared to have enough funds to pay.
The court therefore ordered Kalarickal to pay the $400 within 30 days of the March 1 order. The opinion does not state that the action was dismissed at that time. Instead, it warned that the action would be dismissed if he failed to comply. If he complied, the case would be processed under the Clerk’s Office procedures.
Appeal-related ruling
The court certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to proceed without prepaying fees for an appeal.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.