Jackson v. Destiny's Child
- Laura Swain
- 1:23-cv-10507
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In Jackson v. Destiny’s Child, Judge Swain ordered a handwritten signature and warned that noncompliance would lead to dismissal.
Jouan J. Jackson must provide an original signature on the Second Amended Complaint within the stated deadline to avoid the conditional dismissal described in the order. The order also affects any appeal by denying permission to proceed without paying fees.
What happened
In Jouan J. Jackson v. Destiny’s Child, et al., Jouan J. Jackson submitted a second amended complaint without a signature while representing himself.
The court ordered Jackson to send the signature page with an original signature within 30 days. The court also said that no summons would issue yet and that the case would proceed through the Clerk’s Office if he complied.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain stated that the action would be dismissed if Jackson did not comply on time. She also denied permission to proceed without paying fees for any appeal, finding that an appeal would not be taken in good faith.
The detailed version
- Jackson v. Destiny's Child · No. 1:23-cv-10507
- Laura Swain
- Mar. 28, 2024
Background
Jouan J. Jackson brought the action without a lawyer. He submitted a Second Amended Complaint that did not contain a signature. The opinion also includes references to exhibits concerning alleged copying or infringement of musical works, but this order does not decide those allegations.
Signature requirement
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 11(a) requires a party who is not represented by a lawyer to personally sign a pleading or other paper. The court explained that this requirement calls for a handwritten signature or another mark placed by hand. Local Civil Rule 11.1(a) also applies.
Court’s order
The court directed Jackson to resubmit the signature page of the Second Amended Complaint with an original signature within 30 days of the order. No summons shall issue at this time. If Jackson complies, the case shall be processed under the Clerk’s Office procedures. If he does not comply within the allowed time, the action will be dismissed.
The court also certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that an appeal from this order would not be taken in good faith. It therefore denied permission to proceed without paying the required fees for purposes of an appeal. Judge Laura Taylor Swain signed the order as Chief United States District Judge.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.