Williams v. Doe
- Paul Engelmayer
- 1:22-cv-04224
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Williams v. Doe, Judge Swain ordered pro se prisoner Jason Williams to pay filing fees or submit authorization within 30 days before the case proceeds.
Jason Williams, an incarcerated plaintiff representing himself, must either pay the required fees or submit a prisoner authorization within 30 days for the case to proceed. The order also affects his ability to appeal without prepaying fees.
What happened
In Williams v. Doe, Jason Williams, who is incarcerated and representing himself, filed a civil action but did not submit the required authorization to have filing fees deducted from his prisoner account. He had submitted an application to proceed without paying fees upfront.
The court gave Williams 30 days to either pay $402 in fees or complete and submit the prisoner authorization. The court said no summons would issue at that time and that the case would be processed if he complied. If he did not comply within the deadline, the action would be dismissed.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain also ruled that an appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to proceed without prepaying appeal fees. The order did not decide the underlying claims.
The detailed version
- Williams v. Doe · No. 1:22-cv-04224
- Paul Engelmayer
- May 31, 2022
Background
Jason Williams, who was incarcerated at Five Points Correctional Facility, brought this civil action without a lawyer. He submitted an application to proceed in forma pauperis (IFP), meaning without paying the filing fees in advance, but he did not submit the separate prisoner authorization required for the court to arrange installment payments from his account.
Order
The court explained that a prisoner must either pay $402 in fees—a $350 filing fee and a $52 administrative fee—or submit a signed IFP application and prisoner authorization. The authorization directs the correctional facility to deduct the $350 filing fee from the prisoner's account in installments and to provide certified account statements for the previous six months. The administrative fee does not apply to a person granted IFP status.
The court ordered Williams, within 30 days of the order, to either pay the $402 in fees or complete and submit the attached prisoner authorization, labeled with docket number 22-CV-4224. No summons would issue at that time. If Williams complied, the case would be processed under the Clerk's Office procedures; if he did not comply within the permitted time, the action would be dismissed.
Other Ruling and Effect
The court certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied IFP status for purposes of an appeal. The order did not address the merits of Williams's claims against the defendants. It also cautioned that certain dismissals of prisoner actions may count as strikes under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g).
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.