Hines v. State of Calif.
- Proceeding
- district
- Area
- civil
- Panel
- Todd W. Robinson (author)
Analysis
The court reviewed a pro se civil rights complaint filed by James Lynn Hines that lacked the required filing fee and a motion to proceed in forma pauperis. The court dismissed the complaint without prejudice, ordering the plaintiff to pay the fee or file an IFP motion within 21 days.
| What the court decided | The model |
|---|---|
Dismissal of the Complaint without prejudice for failure to pay the filing fee.“Consequently, the Court DISMISSES WITHOUT PREJUDICE Mr. Hines’ Complaint (ECF No. 1) for failure to pay the requisite filing fee.” | agree with court The dismissal is procedurally correct. Under 28 U.S.C. § 1914(a), a civil action must be accompanied by a filing fee. If the fee is not paid, the action may only proceed if the plaintiff is granted leave to proceed in forma pauperis under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a). The order states that Mr. Hines did not pay the fee or file an IFP motion. Therefore, the court was required to dismiss the action. Dismissing without prejudice allows the plaintiff to cure the defect by paying the fee or filing the IFP motion within the specified time. |
The order itself: sound — The order correctly identifies the statutory requirement for filing fees and the exception for in forma pauperis status. It accurately applies the law to the facts that the plaintiff failed to pay the fee or file an IFP motion. The remedy of dismissal without prejudice, coupled with a deadline to cure the defect, is the standard and appropriate procedure in this context.
Opinion
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 11 JAMES LYNN HINES, Case No.: 20-CV-2107 TWR (DEB) 12 Plaintiff, ORDER DISMISSING CIVIL 13 v. ACTION FOR FAILURE TO PAY FILING FEES REQUIRED BY 14 STATE OF CALIFORNIA, et al. 28 U.S.C. § 1914(a) 15 Defendants. (ECF No. 1) 16 17 Plaintiff James Lynn Hines, proceeding pro se, filed a Complaint under 28 U.S.C.
18 § 1983 for violation of his constitutional and civil rights. (See generally ECF No. 1.) 19 All parties instituting any civil action, suit, or proceeding in a district court of the 20 United States, except an application for writ of habeas corpus, must pay a filing fee of 21 $400.1 See 28 U.S.C. § 1914(a). An action may proceed despite a plaintiff’s failure to 22 prepay the entire fee only if he is granted leave to proceed in forma pauperis pursuant to 23 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a). See Andrews v. Cervantes, 493 F.3d 1047, 1051 (9th Cir. 2007); 24 Rodriguez v. Cook, 169 F.3d 1176, 1177 (9th Cir. 1999). 25 / / / 26 27 1 In addition to the $350 statutory fee, civil litigants must pay an additional administrative fee of $50. See 28 28 U.S.C. § 1914(a) (Judicial Conference Schedule of Fees, District Court Misc. Fee Schedule, § 14 (eff. Dec. 1, 1 Mr. Hines has not paid the required $400 filing fee or filed a motion to proceed in 2 ||forma pauperis. Consequently, the Court DISMISSES WITHOUT PREJUDICE 3 ||Mr. Hines’ Complaint (ECF No. 1) for failure to pay the requisite filing fee. No later than 4 || twenty-one (21) calendar days from the date on which this Order is electronically docketed, 5 ||Mr. Hines must either (1) pay the full $400 filing fee, or (2) move to proceed in forma 6 || pauperis. Should Mr. Hines fail timely to pay the filing fee or move to proceed in 7 |\|forma pauperis, this action will remain dismissed without prejudice without further 8 || Order of the Court. 9 IT IS SO ORDERED. 10 Dated: October 28, 2020 Ton (ob Honorable Todd W. Robinson 13 United States District Court 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28