Brown v. Board of Directions
- Laura Swain
- 1:22-cv-02646
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
Brown v. Board of Directors: Judge Swain ordered Brown to pay $402 or submit a completed amended fee-waiver application.
Damonte Brown, who was proceeding without a lawyer, must either pay the filing fees or submit an amended application showing that he cannot afford them.
What happened
In Brown v. Board of Directors, Damonte Brown filed this case without a lawyer and asked to proceed without paying the filing fees. The court said his application did not show that he could not afford the fees because he left questions unanswered or wrote “privacy observances.”
The court gave Brown 30 days to either pay $402 or submit a fully completed amended application with facts showing he cannot afford the fees. The court did not issue a summons at this time.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain ordered these steps and said the case would be processed if Brown complied. If he did not comply within 30 days, the action would be dismissed; the court also denied fee-free status for any appeal from this order.
The detailed version
- Brown v. Board of Directions · No. 1:22-cv-02646
- Laura Swain
- Apr. 1, 2022
Background
Damonte Brown brought this action without a lawyer. To start a civil action in the district court, a plaintiff must either pay $402 in fees—$350 for filing and $52 administrative—or submit an application to proceed without paying those fees in advance. This type of application is commonly called an application to proceed in forma pauperis, or IFP.
Brown submitted an IFP application. The court found that his responses did not establish that he was unable to pay. According to the order, Brown either left questions about his financial circumstances unanswered or responded “privacy observances.”
Order
The court ordered Brown, within 30 days of April 1, 2022, to do one of two things: pay the $402 in fees or submit an amended IFP application. The amended application must be signed, fully completed, labeled with docket number 22-CV-2646 (LTS), and provide facts showing that Brown cannot afford the fees. If the court grants the amended application, Brown may proceed without paying the fees in advance.
The court directed that no summons issue at that time. It stated that the case would be processed under the Clerk’s Office procedures if Brown complied, but that the action would be dismissed if he failed to comply within the allowed time. The court also certified that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-free status for purposes of an appeal.
Disposition
Judge Laura Taylor Swain issued an order directing Brown to pay the filing fees or submit an amended IFP application. The opinion does not state that the action had already been dismissed.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.