Williams v. Food Bank Company
- Laura Swain
- 1:23-cv-06933
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Williams v. Food Bank Company, Chief Judge Swain ordered payment of the filing fees or submission of an IFP application within 30 days.
Rahjeem Williams, who must either pay $402 in fees or submit a signed IFP application within 30 days to avoid dismissal of the action.
What happened
Rahjeem Williams v. Food Bank Company is a case brought by Williams without a lawyer. Williams submitted a complaint but did not pay the required fees or provide an application to proceed without paying them upfront.
The court ordered Williams, within 30 days, either to pay $402 in fees or submit a signed application to proceed without prepayment. No summons would be issued at that time, and the action would be dismissed if Williams did not comply.
Chief Judge Laura Taylor Swain also denied permission to appeal without paying fees, finding that an appeal would not be taken in good faith. This order did not decide the underlying claims.
The detailed version
- Williams v. Food Bank Company · No. 1:23-cv-06933
- Laura Swain
- Aug. 8, 2023
Background
Rahjeem Williams brought this civil action pro se, meaning without a lawyer. Williams submitted the complaint without paying the required filing fees and without submitting an application to proceed in forma pauperis (IFP), which means proceeding without paying fees in advance.
Order
The court explained that starting a civil action required either payment of $402—consisting of a $350 filing fee and a $52 administrative fee—or submission of a signed IFP application under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1914 and 1915. The court ordered Williams to take one of those steps within 30 days of the order. If Williams submitted an IFP application and the court granted it, Williams could proceed without prepaying the fees.
No summons would issue at that time. The case would be processed under the Clerk’s Office procedures if Williams complied. If Williams failed to comply within the allowed time, the action would be dismissed.
Appeal ruling and effect
Chief United States District Judge Laura Taylor Swain certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied IFP status for purposes of an appeal. The order addressed filing requirements and did not decide the merits of Williams’s claims against Food Bank Company or the other defendants.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.