Ct. of Appeals dismissed petitioner’s petition for review of Board’s removal order, where petitioner failed to either pay docketing fee or file timely motion to proceed in forma pauperis that contained required affidavit pursuant to Rule 24(b). Record showed that: (1) petitioner’s appellate counsel failed to comply with series of Ct. of Appeal’s orders requiring counsel to pay docketing fee or file motion to proceed in forma pauperis; (2) counsel gave excuse as to his noncompliance by stating that his smart-phone failed to give him notifications of said orders, as well as need to file additional pleading in support of his motion for stay of removal order; (3) Ct. of Appeals rejected counsel’s excuse of smart-phone failure; (4) Ct. of Appeals denied motion for stay due to counsel’s lack of filing supplemental pleading, dismissed petition for review for failure to pay docketing fee or file compliant motion to proceed in forma pauperis and sanctioned appellate counsel $1,000 to due his failure to properly attend to needs of his client. Ct. of Appeals also observed that it had issued 24 rules to show cause against appellate counsel in 12 cases and issued another rule to show in this case that asked why appellate counsel should not be suspended or removed from bar pursuant to Rule 46(b) due to his pattern of non-compliance with court directives.
Federal 7th Circuit Court
Civil Court
Sanctions