LaChapelle-Banks v. Colvin

Filing 2

ORDER denying 1 Motion for Leave to Proceed in forma pauperis; plaintiff has 30 days to pay the filing fee; signed by Judge Ronald B. Leighton.(DN)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON
AT TACOMA

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TERI JEAN LACHAPELLE-BANKS,
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Plaintiff,
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Case No. 2:16-cv-01956-RBL
ORDER DENYING APPLICATION
TO PROCEED IN FORMA PAUPERIS

v.
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CAROLYN W. COLVIN, Acting
11 Commissioner of Social Security,
Defendant.

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THIS MATTER comes before the Court on plaintiff’s filing of an application to proceed

14 in forma pauperis and a complaint to review and set aside a decision of the Social Security
15 Administration under 42 U.S.C. § 405(g). Because plaintiff’s application indicates that her
16 household has sufficient income and assets with which to pay the filing fee, the undersigned
17 denies the application.
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DISCUSSION

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The district court may permit indigent litigants to proceed in forma pauperis upon

20 completion of a proper affidavit of indigency. See 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a). However, the Court has
21 broad discretion in denying an application to proceed in forma pauperis. Weller v. Dickson, 314
22 F.2d 598 (9th Cir. 1963), cert. denied, 375 U.S. 845 (1963).
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By requesting the court to proceed in forma pauperis, plaintiff is asking the government
to incur the filing fee because she allegedly is unable to afford the costs necessary to proceed
ORDER DENYING APPLICATION TO
PROCEED IN FORMA PAUPERIS - 1

1 with her cause of action.
In her application, plaintiff indicated that her household receives monthly income of

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3 $1,038.32 in self-employment income, $3,217.73 in pensions, and $3,030.00 in disability. Dkt. 1
4 at 1. While the undersigned recognizes that the total of this income does not constitute an overly
5 substantial net income for a four-person household, given that plaintiff and her spouse also have
6 significant assets and savings, it does not seem unreasonable to expect her to pay the required
7 filing fee. See Dkt. 1 at 2.
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CONCLUSION

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Because it is reasonable for plaintiff to incur the costs to proceed with this cause of

10 action, the undersigned denies her application to proceed in forma pauperis. Accordingly, the
11 undersigned orders plaintiff to pay the required filing fee within 30 days of the filing of this
12 order.
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IT IS SO ORDERED.

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DATED this 23rd day of December, 2016.

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A

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RONALD B. LEIGHTON
United States District Judge

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ORDER DENYING APPLICATION TO
PROCEED IN FORMA PAUPERIS - 2