Frost v. Trump
- Laura Swain
- 1:22-cv-06126
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Frost v. Trump, Judge Swain barred Frost from future fee-free civil filings here without permission after dismissing his action as frivolous.
The order directly affects Vinton Frost by restricting his future civil filings without paying filing fees in the Southern District of New York unless he first obtains court permission. It also denies him fee-free status for an appeal from this order.
What happened
In Frost v. Trump, Vinton Frost, who was representing himself, had previously had this action dismissed as frivolous. The court also noted his history of filing frivolous and duplicative lawsuits and ordered him to explain why he should not be restricted from filing without paying court fees.
Frost did not submit the required explanation. The court therefore barred him from filing future civil actions without paying court fees in this court unless he first obtains permission. To seek permission, he must submit his proposed complaint and a copy of the bar order.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain ordered the clerk to close the case and enter judgment. She also denied fee-free status for any appeal, after finding that an appeal would not be taken in good faith, and warned that further frivolous filings could lead to additional sanctions, including monetary penalties.
The detailed version
- Frost v. Trump · No. 1:22-cv-06126
- Laura Swain
- Oct. 4, 2022
Background
Vinton Frost filed this action without a lawyer. On July 29, 2022, the court dismissed the action as frivolous and noted Frost's history of filing frivolous and duplicative lawsuits in this and other federal courts. The court then ordered Frost to submit a declaration within 30 days explaining why he should not be barred from filing additional civil actions in this court without paying filing fees unless he first received permission.
Frost did not file the required declaration.
Ruling
The court issued the bar order under 28 U.S.C. § 1651. It barred Frost from filing future civil actions in this court without paying filing fees unless he first obtains leave, or permission, from the court. Any motion for permission must include a copy of the proposed complaint and a copy of the bar order, and must be filed with the court's Pro Se Intake Unit. If Frost files an action without first seeking permission, the action will be dismissed for violating the order.
The court also warned that continued submission of frivolous documents could result in additional sanctions, including monetary penalties. The clerk was directed to close the action and terminate all motions, and to enter judgment. The court certified that any appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied Frost permission to appeal without paying filing fees.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.