Chestnut v. Bank of America, N.A.
- Laura Swain
- 1:22-cv-00123
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Chestnut v. Bank of America, Judge Swain ordered Rodney Chestnut to pay fees or submit an application to proceed without prepayment.
Rodney Chestnut, the pro se plaintiff, was required to pay the fees or submit an application to proceed without prepayment within 30 days.
What happened
In Chestnut v. Bank of America, N.A., Rodney Chestnut filed a civil action without paying the required fees or submitting an application to proceed without prepayment of fees.
The court gave Chestnut 30 days to pay $402 or submit the application. The court said that if he does not comply, the action will be dismissed, and no summons will issue at this time.
Judge Swain also denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees, finding that any appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith.
The detailed version
- Chestnut v. Bank of America, N.A. · No. 1:22-cv-00123
- Laura Swain
- Jan. 6, 2022
Background
Rodney Chestnut brought this civil action pro se, meaning without a lawyer. He submitted the complaint without paying the required fees and without submitting an application to proceed without prepaying them.
Court’s Order
The court explained that a civil action requires payment of a $350 filing fee and a $52 administrative fee, for a total of $402. Alternatively, a plaintiff may submit a signed application to proceed without prepayment of fees under 28 U.S.C. § 1915.
The court ordered Chestnut, within 30 days of the order, either to pay the $402 in fees or to submit the attached application. If the court grants the application, Chestnut may proceed without prepaying the fees. The Clerk of Court was directed to mail the order to Chestnut and record service on the docket. No summons was to issue at that time. The court stated that if Chestnut failed to comply within the allowed period, the action would be dismissed.
Appeal-Fee Ruling
The court 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 appeal without prepaying fees. Judge Laura Taylor Swain signed the order.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.