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S.D.N.Y.Procedural orderFiled Aug. 3, 2023

West v. The City of New York

Judge
Laura Swain
Docket
1:23-cv-02256
Court
U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
Pages
8
Civil ProcedurePro Se
In one sentence

In West v. The City of New York, Judge Swain granted West’s request to extend the deadline for amending her complaint.

Who this affects

Helen Elaine West received additional time to amend her complaint; the case remained subject to dismissal if she did not file an amended complaint by September 24, 2023.

What happened

Helen Elaine West filed this case without a lawyer. The court had previously found that her complaint did not state a claim for relief and allowed her to amend it within 60 days.

West asked for more time to amend her complaint, requesting a deadline of September 24, 2023. The court granted that request and provided an amended-complaint form. It warned that if she did not file an amended complaint, the complaint would be dismissed for failing to state a claim.

Judge Laura Taylor Swain also ruled that an appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith and denied West permission to appeal without paying filing fees.

The detailed version

For law students, journalists, and other readers who want the full reasoning

Case
West v. The City of New York · No. 1:23-cv-02256
Judge
Laura Swain
Date
Aug. 3, 2023

Background

Helen Elaine West filed the action without a lawyer. On May 30, 2023, the court ruled that her complaint failed to state a claim on which relief could be granted and gave her permission to file an amended complaint within 60 days.

On August 1, 2023, West asked to extend the amendment deadline until September 24, 2023. The order does not describe the underlying claims in her complaint.

Ruling

The court granted West’s request for an extension of time. If she chose to file an amended complaint, she was required to do so by September 24, 2023, using the attached form. The court stated that if she did not file an amended complaint, the complaint would be dismissed for failure to state a claim upon which relief may be granted.

The court also certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith. It therefore denied permission to appeal without prepaying filing fees.

Judge

The order was signed by Laura Taylor Swain, Chief United States District Judge.

The authoritative version

Read the full 8-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.

Open opinion PDF →
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