Granados v. New York State Dept. of Corr. Counsel Office
- Laura Swain
- 1:23-cv-06165
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Granados v. New York State Dept. of Corr. Counsel Office, Judge Swain ordered payment or an amended fee-waiver application within 30 days.
Delia Granados, who must either pay $402 or submit an adequate amended application to proceed without paying the fees upfront within 30 days. The action will be dismissed if she does not comply.
What happened
Delia Granados brought Granados v. New York State Dept. of Corr. Counsel Office without a lawyer and asked to proceed without paying the court fees upfront. She submitted an application reporting no income, resources, expenses, or debts.
The court said the application did not explain how Granados pays for her living expenses, so it could not determine that she cannot pay. The court ordered her, within 30 days, either to pay $402 or submit an amended application with facts explaining how she supports herself and showing that she cannot pay. No summons will issue at this time.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain also ruled that any appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-waiver status for an appeal. If Granados does not comply within the deadline, the action will be dismissed.
The detailed version
- Granados v. New York State Dept. of Corr. Counsel Office · No. 1:23-cv-06165
- Laura Swain
- July 18, 2023
Background
Delia Granados filed this action without a lawyer. To begin a civil case in the Southern District of New York, a plaintiff must either pay $402 in fees—$350 for filing and $52 for administration—or submit a signed application to proceed without paying those fees upfront. This type of application is commonly called an application to proceed without prepayment of fees, or an IFP application.
Granados submitted an IFP application stating that she had no sources of income, resources, expenses, or debts. The court found that she did not provide information about how she pays for her living expenses. Because of that omission, the court could not determine that she lacked enough money to pay the fees.
Order
The court ordered Granados, within 30 days of the order, to do one of two things: pay the $402 in fees or submit an amended IFP application. The amended application must use docket number 23-CV-6165 (LTS) and provide facts explaining how she supports herself and establishing that she cannot pay the filing fees. If the court grants the amended application, Granados may proceed without paying the fees upfront.
The court also ordered that no summons issue at that time. If Granados complies, the Clerk’s Office will process the case under its procedures. If she does not comply within the allowed period, the action will be dismissed.
Appeal Fee Status
The court certified that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied IFP status for purposes of an appeal. This order addressed the filing-fee requirement and Granados’s fee-waiver application; it did not decide the underlying claims in the action.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.