Dante v. Ralphs Supermarket

Background

Raphael Dante brought this civil action without a lawyer. To begin a civil action in the Southern District of New York, a plaintiff must either pay $405 in fees—a $350 filing fee and a $55 administrative fee—or submit a signed application to proceed without prepaying fees, commonly called an application to proceed in forma pauperis.

Dante filed the complaint without paying the fees or submitting a completed application for this court. Instead, he filed a motion seeking permission to proceed without prepaying fees on appeal. The court considered that submission as a possible request for permission to proceed without prepaying fees in this case, but found that it did not provide enough information to determine that Dante could not pay. In particular, the submission stated that he had more than $500,000 in monthly expenses but did not identify any source of income from which he paid those expenses.

Order

The court ordered Dante to do one of two things within 30 days of the order: pay the $405 in fees, or submit an amended application to proceed without prepaying fees. The amended application must answer all relevant questions and allege facts establishing that Dante cannot pay the filing fees. It must also identify docket number 24-CV-3522 (LTS). If the court grants the amended application, Dante may proceed without prepaying the fees.

The court ordered that no summons issue at that time. It stated that, if Dante complies with the order, the case will be processed under the Clerk’s Office procedures. If he does not comply within the allowed time, the action will be dismissed.

Appeal-related ruling

The court certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal from the order would not be taken in good faith. It therefore denied permission to proceed without prepaying fees for an appeal.