Bynum v. Penguin Random House LLC
- Gregory Woods
- 1:22-cv-07500
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Bynum v. Penguin Random House, Chief Judge Swain ordered payment of fees or an application to proceed without prepayment.
Betty Bynum, who must either pay the required fees or submit an application to proceed without prepayment within 30 days; the case may be dismissed if she does not comply.
What happened
In Bynum v. Penguin Random House LLC, Betty Bynum filed the case without paying the required fees or submitting an application to proceed without prepayment. The opinion states that Bynum was representing herself.
The court ordered Bynum, within 30 days, either to pay $402 in filing and administrative fees or to submit a signed application to proceed without prepayment. The court also stated that no summons would issue at that time.
Chief Judge Swain said the case would be processed if Bynum complied, but that the action would be dismissed if she did not. The court also denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees, finding that any appeal would not be taken in good faith.
The detailed version
- Bynum v. Penguin Random House LLC · No. 1:22-cv-07500
- Gregory Woods
- Sept. 21, 2022
Background
Betty Bynum filed this action against Penguin Random House LLC, Nancy Paulson Books, and defendants identified as Does 1–50. The order states that Bynum was proceeding without a lawyer. She submitted the complaint without paying the required fees and without submitting an application to proceed without prepayment of fees.
Fees or application
The court explained that starting a civil action required either payment of $402—consisting of a $350 filing fee and a $52 administrative fee—or a signed application requesting permission to proceed without prepayment under 28 U.S.C. § 1915. The court ordered Bynum to take one of those steps within 30 days of the order. If she submitted the application, it was to identify docket number 22-CV-7500 (LTS). The court stated that, if it granted the application, Bynum could proceed without paying the fees in advance.
Ruling
Chief United States District Judge Laura Taylor Swain ordered that no summons issue at that time. The court stated that the case would be processed under the Clerk’s Office procedures if Bynum complied with the order, and that the action would be dismissed if she did not comply within the allowed period. The court also certified that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.