Romano v. Saul
- Proceeding
- district
- Area
- civil
- Panel
- Karen S. Crawford (author)
Analysis
The court reviewed plaintiff Mia R.'s application to proceed in forma pauperis in a Social Security appeal. The court granted the application, finding that the plaintiff demonstrated an inability to pay the filing fee while maintaining the necessities of life.
| What the court decided | The model |
|---|---|
Grant plaintiff's Application to Proceed in forma pauperis.“IT IS HEREBY ORDERED THAT plaintiff's Application to Proceed with his Complaint in forma pauperis is GRANTED. [Doc. No. 2.]” | agree with court The court correctly applied the standard from 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a) and *Adkins v. E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co.*. The plaintiff's affidavit showed zero monthly income and assets ($4,682 total) that were insufficient to cover the filing fee without compromising her ability to pay for necessities (monthly expenses of $423). The decision follows logically from the recited facts and cited law. |
The order itself: sound — The order is procedurally correct and cites the appropriate statutory and case law standards for in forma pauperis applications. It accurately applies the *Adkins* standard to the specific financial facts provided in the plaintiff's affidavit. There are no significant gaps or legal errors in the reasoning.
Opinion
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 11 MIA R., Case No.: 20CV840-KSC 12 Plaintiff, ORDER GRANTING APPLICATION 13 v. TO PROCEED IN FORMA PAUPERIS [DOC. NO. 2] 14 ANDREW M. SAUL, Commissioner of Social Security, 15 Defendant. 16 17 On May 4, 2020, plaintiff Mia R. commenced an action against Andrew M. Saul, 18 the Acting Commissioner of Social Security, seeking review of a final adverse decision 19 of the Commissioner. [Doc. No. 1.] Plaintiff also filed an Application to Proceed with her 20 Complaint in forma pauperis. [Doc. No. 2.] 21 A court may authorize the commencement of a suit without prepayment of fees if 22 the plaintiff submits an affidavit, including a statement of all his or her assets, showing 23 that he or she is unable to pay the filing fee. See 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a). The affidavit must 24 “state the facts as to [the] affiant's poverty with some particularity, definiteness and 25 certainty.” United States v. McQuade, 647 F.2d 938, 940 (9th Cir.1981) (internal 26 quotations omitted). 27 28 1 A party need not be completely destitute to proceed in forma pauperis. Adkins v. 2 ||E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co., 335 U.S. 331, 339-340 (1948). An affidavit is sufficient 3 it shows that the applicant cannot pay the fee “and still be able to provide himself [or 4 ||herself] and dependents with the necessities of life.” /d. (internal quotations omitted). 5 Here, plaintiff's application states that she is unemployed and has limited income 6 assets. She has no monthly income. [Doc. No. 2, p. 2.] Her assets are a checking 7 || account with a balance of $300 and a 2009 Honda Fit Sport valued at $4,382. [/d., pp. 2- 8 ||3.] Her monthly expenses, which include food, vehicle insurance and recreation total 9 $423. [d., pp. 4-5.] Therefore, the Court finds that plaintiff has sufficiently shown she 10 || lacks the financial resources to pay her filing fee. Accordingly, 11 IT IS HEREBY ORDERED THAT plaintiff's Application to Proceed with his 12 ||Complaint in forma pauperis is GRANTED. [Doc. No. 2.] 13 ||Dated: May 20, 2020 4 Wi 14 □□ Lee OT 15 Hon. Karen S. Crawford United States Magistrate Judge 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28