West v. Human Resources Administration Department of Social Services/Department…
West v. Human Resources Administration Department of Social Services/Department of Homeless Services
- Laura Swain
- 1:24-cv-03427
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In West v. Human Resources Administration Department of Social Services/Department of Homeless Services, Judge Swain ordered a signature before processing Carmen Maria West’s case.
Carmen Maria West must provide an original signature on the fee-waiver application within 30 days to avoid dismissal of the action. The defendant is not required to respond at this stage because no summons issued.
What happened
Carmen Maria West filed this action without a lawyer and submitted an application to proceed without paying court fees. The application did not include her signature.
The court ordered West to submit the signature page with an original signature within 30 days. The court said no summons would issue for now and that the case would be processed if she complied; otherwise, the action would be dismissed.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain also ruled 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
- West v. Human Resources Administration Department of Social Services/Department… · No. 1:24-cv-03427
- Laura Swain
- May 6, 2024
Background
Carmen Maria West brought the action without a lawyer. She submitted an application to proceed without prepaying court fees, but the application did not have her signature.
Court’s Analysis
The court relied on Rule 11(a) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and Local Civil Rule 11.1(a), which require an unrepresented party to personally sign a pleading, motion, or other court filing. The court stated that the required signature must be handwritten or otherwise placed by the signer.
Order and Effect
The court directed West to resubmit the signature page of her fee-waiver application with an original signature within 30 days of the order. No summons would issue at that time. If West complied, the Clerk’s Office would process the case under its procedures. If she did not comply within the allowed period, the action would be dismissed.
The court also certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that an appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith and denied West permission to appeal without prepaying fees. The order did not address the merits of West’s underlying claims.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.