Seals v. Department of Homeless Services
- Laura Swain
- 1:23-cv-08267
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Seals v. Department of Homeless Services, Chief Judge Swain dismissed the case without prejudice because Seals did not obtain required filing permission.
Tina R. Seals’s new civil action and any appeal from the dismissal; the opinion also directs the clerk to enter judgment against the action involving the Department of Homeless Services.
What happened
In Seals v. Department of Homeless Services, Tina R. Seals filed a new case without a lawyer and asked to proceed without paying the filing fee. A 2014 court order required her to obtain permission before filing any new case without paying that fee.
The court said Seals had not requested the required permission. It therefore dismissed the action without prejudice for failing to comply with the 2014 order.
Chief Judge Laura Taylor Swain also ruled that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied Seals permission to proceed without paying the filing fee on appeal. The clerk was directed to enter judgment.
The detailed version
- Seals v. Department of Homeless Services · No. 1:23-cv-08267
- Laura Swain
- Sept. 19, 2023
Background
Tina R. Seals filed this new case without a lawyer and requested permission to proceed without paying the filing fee. The opinion states that, in a 2014 order, the court barred Seals from filing any new civil action without paying the filing fee unless she first obtained permission from the court.
Court’s reasoning
The court found that Seals had not sought the permission required by the 2014 order. It dismissed the action under 28 U.S.C. § 1651 for failing to comply with that order. The dismissal was without prejudice, meaning the order did not state that refiling was permanently barred.
Ruling
Chief United States District Judge Laura Taylor Swain dismissed the action without prejudice. The court certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to proceed without paying the filing fee for an appeal. The clerk was directed to enter judgment.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.