Kourani v. Department of Justice
- Laura Swain
- 1:24-cv-00986
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Kourani v. Department of Justice, Judge Swain dismissed the duplicate lawsuit without prejudice and ordered that no filing fee be charged.
Ali Kourani’s duplicate action against the United States Department of Justice was dismissed without prejudice. The court stated that his separate action under docket number 24-CV-0857 (LTS) remained pending, and it directed that he not be charged a filing fee or have funds deducted for this lawsuit.
What happened
Ali Kourani, who was incarcerated, filed this lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Justice. The court noted that he had recently filed an identical complaint in another case in the same court.
The court dismissed this case without prejudice because it appeared to have been opened in error. It directed the Clerk of Court not to charge the $350 filing fee and ordered that no funds be deducted from Kourani’s prison trust account for this lawsuit.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain also denied permission to appeal without paying fees, finding that an appeal would not be taken in good faith. The Clerk was directed to enter judgment dismissing this action without prejudice to Kourani’s pending action under docket number 24-CV-0857 (LTS).
The detailed version
- Kourani v. Department of Justice · No. 1:24-cv-00986
- Laura Swain
- Feb. 14, 2024
Background
Ali Kourani, who was incarcerated at the United States Penitentiary in Marion, Illinois, brought this action without a lawyer against the United States Department of Justice. The court stated that an identical complaint had recently been opened in the same court under docket number 24-CV-0857 (LTS).
Ruling
The court concluded that Kourani appeared to have intended to submit only one complaint and that this action had been opened in error. It dismissed this action without prejudice to Kourani’s pending action under docket number 24-CV-0857 (LTS). The dismissal was therefore directed at this duplicate action, not the pending action identified by the court.
The court directed the Clerk of Court not to charge the $350 filing fee for this action. It also ordered that the warden or superintendent having custody of Kourani not deduct or encumber funds from his prison trust account for this lawsuit.
The court certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied permission to appeal without paying fees. The Clerk was directed to enter judgment dismissing this action without prejudice to the pending action. The order was signed by Chief United States District Judge Laura Taylor Swain.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.