Alexander v. IRS

Background

The caption names Liam Alexander as the plaintiff and the IRS as the defendant. The court stated that Sean Finnegan, who was barred from proceeding without paying filing fees in the Southern District of New York, filed this action in Alexander’s name and submitted an application to proceed without paying filing fees in Alexander’s name.

The court described this as the sixth action it had received from Finnegan in Alexander’s name. In an earlier related proceeding, the court found that Finnegan appeared to have filed an action in Alexander’s name to avoid the filing bar. The court ordered Finnegan to explain why that action should not be dismissed under the bar order, but dismissed it without prejudice after he did not respond. In another earlier related proceeding, the court likewise found that Finnegan had filed an action in Alexander’s name and gave him an opportunity to challenge that finding; he did not respond. The court stated that it had compared addresses, handwriting, and claims in reaching one of those findings.

Ruling

The court concluded that Finnegan had brought this action in Alexander’s name and had sought permission to proceed without paying filing fees in Alexander’s name. Because Finnegan did not comply with the prefiling injunction—the order restricting his ability to file new cases—the court dismissed the action without prejudice under the bar order. The court directed the clerk to enter judgment.

The court also certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal would not be taken in good faith and therefore denied permission to proceed without paying filing fees for an appeal. The opinion did not address the underlying claims against the IRS.