Ezekwo v. Moise
- Laura Swain
- 1:23-cv-10360
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Ezekwo v. Moise, Chief Judge Swain ordered Ezekwo to pay the correct filing fees before the case could proceed.
Ifeoma Ezekwo’s case is paused because she must pay $402 in filing fees within 30 days; otherwise, the action will be dismissed. The $405 money order will be returned, and no summons will issue at this time.
What happened
In Ezekwo v. Moise, Ifeoma Ezekwo filed a complaint without a lawyer on November 22, 2023. She later submitted a $405 money order, but the court required $402 because her case was filed before a December 1 fee increase.
The court ordered the Clerk’s Office to return the $405 money order. Ezekwo must pay $402 within 30 days using an approved payment method. No summons will issue at this time, and the action will be dismissed if she does not comply.
Chief Judge Laura Taylor Swain also certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-free status for an appeal. The order did not decide the underlying claims.
The detailed version
- Ezekwo v. Moise · No. 1:23-cv-10360
- Laura Swain
- Jan. 3, 2024
Background
Ifeoma Ezekwo filed a complaint without a lawyer on November 22, 2023. Before December 1, 2023, filing a civil action in the Southern District of New York required $402 in fees: a $350 filing fee and a $52 administrative fee. The administrative fee increased to $55 on December 1.
On December 21, 2023, Ezekwo submitted a $405 money order. Because she filed her complaint before December 1, the required amount was $402. She therefore overpaid by $3.
Order
The court directed the Finance Unit of the Clerk’s Office to return the $405 money order to Ezekwo. It ordered her to pay $402 within 30 days of the order’s date. Payment must be made by certified check or money order, major credit card, or cash if paid in person; personal checks are not accepted. The payment must include case number 23-CV-10360 (LTS).
No summons shall issue at this time. If Ezekwo does not pay the required fees within the allowed period, the action will be dismissed.
Additional 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. The court therefore denied fee-free status for purposes of an appeal. This order addressed filing-fee compliance and did not reach the merits of Ezekwo’s claims.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.