Bell v. Ambutrans
- Laura Swain
- 1:22-cv-09126
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In Bell v. Ambutrans, Judge Swain ordered pro se plaintiff James Bell to hand-sign his complaint within 30 days or face dismissal, and denied fee-free status for any appeal.
James Bell was required to provide an original signature for his complaint within 30 days. Ambutrans was affected because the case could proceed only if Bell complied, and no summons would issue at that time.
What happened
James Bell brought Bell v. Ambutrans without a lawyer, but he submitted his complaint without a signature. The opinion does not describe the underlying claims.
The court ordered Bell to resubmit the complaint’s signature page with an original signature within 30 days. No summons will issue while he is given this opportunity. If Bell does not comply on time, the action will be dismissed.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain also certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied Bell permission to appeal without prepaying fees. The order addressed only the missing signature and did not decide the underlying claims.
The detailed version
- Bell v. Ambutrans · No. 1:22-cv-09126
- Laura Swain
- Oct. 25, 2022
Background
James Bell brought this action against Ambutrans without a lawyer. He submitted the complaint without signing it. The opinion does not state what claims Bell brought.
Order
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 11(a), along with the applicable local rule, requires an unrepresented party to personally sign a pleading. The court explained that this means a handwritten signature or a mark placed by the party, rather than only a typed name.
The court directed Bell to resubmit the complaint’s signature page with an original signature within 30 days of the order. A copy of the signature page was attached. No summons would issue at that time. The court stated that, if Bell complied, the case would be processed under the Clerk’s Office procedures; if he failed to comply within the allowed time, the action would be dismissed.
Appeal and effect
The court certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith. It therefore denied status allowing an appeal without prepaying filing fees. The order did not address the merits of Bell’s claims against Ambutrans. It was a procedural order requiring correction of the complaint before the case could proceed.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.