Williams, Jr. v. City of New York
- Paul Gardephe
- 1:21-cv-01083
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 1
Williams, Jr. v. City of New York: Judge Parker denied Williams’s request for court-paid medical-expert fees because federal courts cannot pay such fees for indigent litigants.
Alexander Williams, Jr., whose request for court-paid medical-expert fees was denied.
What happened
In Alexander Williams, Jr. v. City of New York et al., Williams indicated that he intended to hire a medical expert to review his medical records. He asked the court to set aside money for the expert’s fees because he had been granted permission to proceed without paying court costs.
The court cited Second Circuit law holding that federal courts are not authorized to waive or pay witness fees for a litigant proceeding without paying court costs. The opinion does not address the underlying claims in the case.
Judge Katharine H. Parker denied Williams’s request and asked the Clerk of Court to mail him a copy of the order.
The detailed version
- Williams, Jr. v. City of New York · No. 1:21-cv-01083
- Paul Gardephe
- June 4, 2021
Background
Alexander Williams, Jr. sent the court a letter stating that he intended to hire a medical expert to review his medical files. He asked the court to set aside funds to pay the expert’s witness fees because he was proceeding in forma pauperis, meaning the court had allowed him to proceed without paying ordinary court costs based on his financial circumstances.
Court’s Reasoning
The court relied on Second Circuit precedent stating that federal courts are not authorized to waive or pay witness fees on behalf of a litigant proceeding in forma pauperis.
Ruling
Judge Katharine H. Parker denied Williams’s request for court-paid medical-expert fees. The court also requested that the Clerk of Court mail Williams a copy of the order. This order addressed the expert-fee request and did not decide the underlying claims described in the case caption.
Read the full 1-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.