In Re: Scott
- Nelson Roman
- 7:21-cv-07168
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In re Morris Lee Scott v. Officer Unknown, Judge Roman dismissed Scott’s bankruptcy appeal because he did not pay the required filing fee.
Morris Lee Scott’s appeal of the bankruptcy court’s dismissal of his Chapter 7 petition was dismissed; the opinion does not state that the district court reached the merits of the petition.
What happened
In re Morris Lee Scott v. Officer Unknown involved Scott’s appeal of a bankruptcy court order dismissing his Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition for failure to pay the filing fee.
Scott had been allowed to pay the fee in installments, but he did not follow the payment plan. He later asked to proceed without paying the fee, but the bankruptcy court denied that request and dismissed his petition after he still did not pay.
Judge Roman dismissed Scott’s appeal for failure to prosecute because Scott had notice of the payment requirement and its consequences but did not pay the fee. The court directed the clerk to close the case and mail the order to Scott, who was representing himself.
The detailed version
- In Re: Scott · No. 7:21-cv-07168
- Nelson Roman
- Sept. 8, 2021
Background
Morris Lee Scott appealed a bankruptcy court order dismissing his Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition for failure to pay the filing fee. When Scott filed the petition, the bankruptcy court allowed him to pay the fee in installments.
Scott did not comply with that payment plan. The bankruptcy court then scheduled a hearing about dismissal. Scott filed an application to proceed without paying the fee, but the bankruptcy court denied it. The bankruptcy court later dismissed the petition because Scott had not paid the required fee.
Court’s Ruling
The district court stated that the bankruptcy court’s dismissal did not reach the merits of Scott’s bankruptcy petition because Scott failed to pay the required fee. The district court then dismissed Scott’s appeal for failure to prosecute. It reasoned that Scott had notice of the consequences of failing to pay, the bankruptcy court had reviewed and denied his application to proceed without paying the fee, and Scott still did not pay.
The court directed the clerk to terminate the action, mail a copy of the order to Scott at the address on the electronic docket, and record proof of service.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.