Cockburn v. District of Columbia
- Colleen McMahon
- 1:21-cv-02888
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 1
In Cockburn v. District of Columbia, Judge McMahon dismissed the complaint without prejudice because Cockburn neither paid the filing fee nor submitted a request to proceed without paying.
Wade R. Cockburn’s complaint was dismissed without prejudice because he did not pay the filing fee or submit an application to proceed without paying it. The court also denied permission to appeal without paying fees.
What happened
In Cockburn v. District of Columbia, the court had ordered Wade R. Cockburn to submit a completed request to proceed without paying the filing fee or pay the required $400 fee within 30 days. The order warned that failing to do so would lead to dismissal.
Cockburn did not submit the request or pay the fee. The opinion does not discuss the underlying claims against the District of Columbia or the other defendants.
Judge McMahon dismissed the complaint without prejudice, meaning the dismissal did not bar refiling. The court also denied Cockburn permission to appeal without paying fees, finding that an appeal would not be taken in good faith.
The detailed version
- Cockburn v. District of Columbia · No. 1:21-cv-02888
- Colleen McMahon
- June 14, 2021
Background
On April 8, 2021, the court directed Plaintiff Wade R. Cockburn to do one of two things within 30 days: submit a completed application to proceed in forma pauperis (a request to proceed without paying court fees), or pay the $400 fee required to file a civil action in the court. The order stated that failure to comply would result in dismissal of the complaint.
Court’s Ruling
The court found that Cockburn had neither filed the application nor paid the fee. It therefore dismissed the complaint without prejudice under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1914 and 1915. The opinion does not address the merits of Cockburn’s claims.
The court also certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) 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 Clerk of Court was directed to mail the order to Cockburn and record service on the docket.
Read the full 1-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.