Filing Fees and Other Costs

Filing Fee

In order to file a complaint, you must pay a filing fee that is currently $405. You may pay the filing fee in-person by cash, check (made out to “Clerk, U.S. District Court”), money order, or credit card. If mailing your complaint, please send in a check.

Proceeding “In Forma Pauperis”

If you are unable to afford the $405 filing fee when you file your complaint, you may file an “Application to Proceed in District Court Without Prepaying Fees or Costs,” also called an “Application to Proceed in Forma Pauperis” (or “IFP”), which is available in the Clerk’s Office or here. This form—which you must sign under penalty of perjury, (see Disclaimers)—requires you to tell the Court certain information regarding your (and your spouse’s) monthly income, monthly expenses, and general financial situation, including assets, debts, etc.

If the judge decides based on your IFP Application that you “cannot pay the court costs and still afford the necessities of life,” Escobedo v. Applebees, 787 F.3d 1226, 1234 (9th Cir. 2015), the judge may grant your application, and you will not need to pay the filing fee. If you are a prisoner, there are other considerations about proceeding pro se that are addressed separately on the Court’s webpage. Please note that, even if you do not have to pay the filing fee, you may still be required to pay other costs later (see below).

If judges grant an IFP Application, they also must review your complaint to make sure that it is not frivolous. See 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2). If you are granted IFP status and the judge determines that your case is not frivolous, the judge will order the U.S. Marshals Service to serve your complaint.

Note: if you are a pro se who is either (1) a Plaintiff in a case that was removed from state court to CASD, or (2) a Defendant in a civil action, you do NOT need to file an IFP application.

The Potential Costs of Losing Your Case in Federal Court

Generally, the parties to a lawsuit must pay for their own lawyers. In certain cases, however, the losing party may be required to pay the prevailing party the amount that the prevailing party has paid their attorneys. Additionally, after the Court enters a judgment, the losing party may need to pay the prevailing party for certain costs they paid during the case, such as those spent on filing fees, witnesses, transcripts, etc. See 28 U.S.C. § 1920; Fed. R. Civ. P. 54(d). Note that you may be responsible for paying these expenses even if you obtained a waiver of the filing fee (i.e., you are proceeding in forma pauperis).