Barton v. Clark
- Lorna Schofield
- 1:23-cv-05827
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In Barton v. Clark, Judge Swain ordered Barton to pay fees or submit prisoner authorization within 30 days.
Michael Alexander Barton is required to pay the fees or submit the prisoner authorization. The order also states that Divine Freedom Ministries cannot appear without a licensed lawyer.
What happened
Barton v. Clark concerns Michael Alexander Barton’s attempt to bring a civil case while detained and representing himself. He submitted an application to avoid paying the fees upfront but did not submit the required prisoner authorization.
The court ordered Barton, within 30 days, either to pay $402 in fees or submit the authorization allowing deductions from his account for the filing fee. No summons will issue yet, and the case will be processed if he complies.
If Barton does not comply on time, the action will be dismissed. Judge Laura Taylor Swain also denied permission to appeal without paying fees, finding that an appeal would not be taken in good faith.
The detailed version
- Barton v. Clark · No. 1:23-cv-05827
- Lorna Schofield
- July 27, 2023
Background
Michael Alexander Barton filed this civil action while detained at the Eric M. Taylor Center on Rikers Island. The opinion says he proceeded without a lawyer and attempted to bring the action for himself and Divine Freedom Ministries. The court explained that a person without a law license may represent only himself, and that an organization cannot appear in federal court without a licensed lawyer.
A civil action ordinarily requires payment of a $350 filing fee and a $52 administrative fee. A prisoner may instead ask to proceed without paying the fees upfront by submitting an application to proceed without prepayment of fees. If that application is granted, the Prison Litigation Reform Act requires the $350 filing fee to be collected in installments from the prisoner’s account. The prisoner must therefore also submit an authorization directing the facility to make those deductions and provide certified account statements for the prior six months.
Order
Barton submitted the application to proceed without prepayment of fees but did not submit the prisoner authorization. The court ordered him, within 30 days of the order, either to pay the full $402 in fees or to complete and submit the attached prisoner authorization, labeled with docket number 23-CV-5827 (LTS).
No summons will issue at this time. If Barton complies, the Clerk’s Office will process the case under its procedures. If he does not comply within the allowed time, the action will be dismissed. The court also certified that any appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without prepayment of fees.
Effect
This order addresses filing requirements and does not decide the underlying claims against the defendants. It also warns that a later dismissal for frivolousness, maliciousness, or failure to state a claim could count as a strike under the prisoner litigation statute. Judge Laura Taylor Swain signed the order on July 27, 2023.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.