Cockburn v. District of Columbia
- Colleen McMahon
- 1:21-cv-02888
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Cockburn v. District of Columbia, Judge McMahon ordered the pro se plaintiff to pay fees or submit an application to proceed without paying them within 30 days.
Wade R. Cockburn must either pay $402 in fees or submit a signed application to proceed without prepaying fees within 30 days. Failure to comply will result in dismissal of the action, according to the order.
What happened
In Cockburn v. District of Columbia, Wade R. Cockburn filed a civil action without paying the required fees or submitting an application to proceed without paying them. The opinion identifies Cockburn as representing himself.
Judge McMahon ordered Cockburn, within 30 days, either to pay $402 in filing and administrative fees or submit a signed application to proceed without prepaying those fees. The court said no summons would issue at that time and that the action would be dismissed if Cockburn did not comply.
Judge Colleen McMahon also stated that any appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to proceed without paying fees for an appeal. The order did not decide the claims in the lawsuit.
The detailed version
- Cockburn v. District of Columbia · No. 1:21-cv-02888
- Colleen McMahon
- Apr. 8, 2021
Background
Wade R. Cockburn brought this civil action without a lawyer. The complaint was submitted without the required fees and without an application asking to proceed without prepaying those fees.
Payment or application requirement
The court explained that starting a civil action in the Southern District of New York requires payment of $402: a $350 filing fee and a $52 administrative fee. Instead of paying, a plaintiff may request permission to proceed without prepaying fees by submitting a signed application under 28 U.S.C. § 1915.
The court ordered Cockburn to take one of those two steps within 30 days of the order: pay the $402 or submit the attached application. If the court grants the application, Cockburn may proceed without prepaying the fees. The application must identify docket number 21-CV-2888.
Order and effect
Judge Colleen McMahon directed the Clerk of Court to mail the order to Cockburn and record service on the docket. No summons was to issue at that time. The case would be processed under the Clerk’s Office procedures if Cockburn complied; if Cockburn failed to comply within the allowed time, the action would be dismissed.
The court also certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith. It therefore denied permission to proceed without prepaying fees for an appeal. This order addressed filing requirements and did not reach the merits of Cockburn’s claims.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.