Daniels v. Fidelity Investments

Background

Marilyn Daniels, representing herself, sued Fidelity Investments and Charter Communications, Inc., alleging that they violated her rights. She submitted an application to proceed without prepaying court fees, commonly called an application to proceed in forma pauperis (IFP). Instead of answering the application’s questions about income, assets, and expenses, Daniels wrote “4th Amendment Constitution for the United States of North America” across those questions. She also submitted a document titled “Writ to Proceed PRO BONO: FREE ACCESS TO COURT,” asserting that free access to the courts was a right and that completing the standard form could compromise her status.

Court’s Analysis

The court explained that civil cases generally require payment of a $402 filing fee: a $350 filing fee and a $52 administrative fee. Under 28 U.S.C. § 1915, a litigant may proceed without prepaying that fee only if the court grants IFP status. The statute is intended to provide court access to people who cannot pay because of poverty; it does not create an automatic right to free access for every litigant. The court concluded that neither Daniels’s IFP application nor her writ provided enough information about her ability to pay.

Ruling

The court denied Daniels’s “Writ to Proceed PRO BONO: FREE ACCESS TO COURT.” Judge Louis L. Stanton ordered her, within 30 days of the order, either to pay the $402 fee or submit an amended IFP application labeled with the case’s docket number and containing enough financial information for the court to decide whether she could not afford the fee. If the court grants the amended application, Daniels may proceed without prepaying the fee. No summons would issue at that time, and the court stated that the action would be dismissed if she did not comply within the permitted period.