Cuebas v. Tellone
- Laura Swain
- 1:23-cv-04710
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Cuebas v. Tellone, Judge Swain dismissed the action without prejudice because Cuebas did not file a complaint and denied appeal IFP status.
Sandra Cuebas’s action against Elyssa Tellone and Anthony Tellone was dismissed without prejudice because Cuebas did not file a complaint; any appeal was denied permission to proceed without prepaying fees.
What happened
Cuebas v. Tellone began when Sandra Cuebas filed an incomplete, unsigned request for an emergency court order and a request to proceed without prepaying fees. She did not file a complaint.
The court had directed Cuebas to file a signed complaint within 30 days and warned that failing to do so would lead to dismissal. Cuebas did not file the required complaint, so the action could not proceed.
Judge Swain dismissed the action without prejudice and terminated all other pending matters. The court also ruled that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to proceed without prepaying fees for an appeal.
The detailed version
- Cuebas v. Tellone · No. 1:23-cv-04710
- Laura Swain
- July 24, 2023
Background
Sandra Cuebas, who was proceeding without a lawyer, started the action by filing an unsigned and incomplete form application for an order requiring the defendants to explain why a preliminary injunction and temporary restraining order should not issue. She also filed a signed and completed request to proceed without prepaying filing fees. Cuebas did not file a complaint.
Court’s Direction
On June 6, 2023, the court directed Cuebas to file a signed complaint within 30 days. The court cited Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 3, which provides that a new civil action is properly started by filing a complaint. The court’s order warned that failing to comply would result in dismissal. The opinion notes that this earlier order was incorrectly dated July 6, 2023.
Ruling
Because Cuebas did not file the required complaint, the court concluded that the action could not proceed. Judge Laura Taylor Swain dismissed the action without prejudice and terminated all other pending matters. The court directed the Clerk of Court to enter judgment.
The court also 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 permission to proceed without prepaying fees for purposes of an appeal.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.