Diaz v. The New York State Committed a Crime against the United States or…
Diaz v. The New York State Committed a Crime against the United States or Against the Citizen of the United States
- Laura Swain
- 1:23-cv-03215
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 5
In Diaz v. The New York State, Judge Swain ordered payment of filing fees or submission of forms to proceed without prepayment.
Gilberto Diaz, an incarcerated plaintiff representing himself, must either pay the required fees or submit the specified application and prisoner authorization for the case to proceed.
What happened
Gilberto Diaz filed this civil action without paying the required fees or submitting a completed application to proceed without prepayment and a prisoner authorization. The order states that Diaz is incarcerated and representing himself.
The court gave Diaz 30 days to either pay $402 in fees or submit the required application and authorization. The $402 consists of a $350 filing fee and a $52 administrative fee; if the court grants the application, the $350 filing fee must be paid in installments from his account.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain ordered that no summons issue yet and said the case would be processed if Diaz complies. She also stated that failing to comply within the allowed time will result in dismissal, and denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees.
The detailed version
- Diaz v. The New York State Committed a Crime against the United States or… · No. 1:23-cv-03215
- Laura Swain
- Apr. 26, 2023
Background
Gilberto Diaz filed a civil action while incarcerated at Green Haven Correctional Facility and without a lawyer. He submitted his complaint without paying the required fees and without a completed application to proceed without prepayment or a prisoner authorization.
Fees and required filings
The court explained that a prisoner must either pay $402 to bring a civil action—$350 for the filing fee and $52 for the administrative fee—or ask to proceed without prepaying fees by submitting a signed application and a prisoner authorization. The authorization permits the correctional facility to deduct the $350 filing fee from the prisoner's account in installments and requires certified account statements for the prior six months. The $52 administrative fee does not apply to a person granted permission to proceed without prepayment.
Order
The court ordered Diaz, within 30 days of the order, to either pay the $402 in fees or submit the attached application and prisoner authorization, labeled with docket number 23-CV-3215 (LTS). No summons shall issue at this time. The court stated that, if Diaz complies, the case will be processed under the Clerk's Office procedures; if he does not comply within the permitted time, the action will be dismissed.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain certified that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without prepaying fees. The order does not decide the underlying claims in the complaint.
Read the full 5-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.