Fontil v. Abrams
- Laura Swain
- 1:23-cv-04875
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Fontil v. Abrams, Judge Swain barred further filings in the action except documents directed to the Second Circuit.
Raychel Fontil is barred from filing further documents in this action, except documents directed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit; other motions or letters will not be addressed.
What happened
Raychel Fontil filed the action without a lawyer. The court had dismissed it as frivolous on June 14, 2023, and later ordered Fontil to explain why she should not be barred from filing more documents in the case.
Fontil submitted a declaration opposing the proposed filing restriction, but the court found her arguments insufficient. The court therefore issued the bar order.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain barred Fontil from filing any further documents in the action, except documents directed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. The court also said it would not address other motions or letters and directed the clerk to terminate pending motions.
The detailed version
- Fontil v. Abrams · No. 1:23-cv-04875
- Laura Swain
- Jan. 29, 2024
Background
Raychel Fontil filed the action without a lawyer against Judge Ronnie Abrams. On June 14, 2023, the court dismissed the action as frivolous. On January 2, 2024, the court ordered Fontil to show cause—meaning to explain—by declaration why the court should not bar her from filing further documents in the action, except documents directed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
Fontil’s Response
Fontil filed a declaration on January 10, 2024. The opinion states that her arguments against the filing restriction were insufficient.
Ruling
The court issued the bar order under 28 U.S.C. § 1651. It barred Fontil from filing any further documents in the action, except documents directed to the Second Circuit. The court stated that it would not address any motions or letters Fontil filed in the action that were not directed to the Court of Appeals. It directed the clerk to terminate any motions in the case.
The court also certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied Fontil permission to proceed without paying fees for purposes of an appeal.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.