Mallory v. Poindexter

390 F. App'x 240

• Court: Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
• Decided: August 5, 2010
• Docket: 10-1538
• Status: Unpublished

Opinion

Dismissed by unpublished PER CURIAM opinion.

Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.

PER CURIAM:

Calvin Ruffin Mallory seeks to appeal the district court’s dismissal of his complaint without prejudice because he failed to comply with the district court’s October 4, 2002, order enjoining him from filing pleadings that do not comport with certain requirements, such as legibility and submission on the proper forms.

Generally, a district court’s dismissal of a complaint without prejudice is not ap-pealable. See Domino Sugar Corp. v. Sugar Workers Local Union 392, 10 F.3d 1064, 1066-67 (4th Cir.1993) (holding that “a plaintiff may not appeal the dismissal of his complaint without prejudice unless the grounds for dismissal clearly indicate that no amendment [in the complaint] could cure the defects in the plaintiffs case”) (alteration in original) (internal quotation marks omitted). However, “if the grounds of the dismissal make clear that no amendment could cure the defects in the plaintiffs case, the order dismissing the complaint is final in fact and [appellate jurisdiction exists].” Id. at 1066 (alteration in original) (internal quotation marks omitted).

In this case, Mallory may be able to save his action by amending his complaint to comply with the district court’s 2002 order. Therefore, the district court’s dismissal of Mallory’s complaint without prejudice is not an appealable final order. Accordingly, we deny leave to proceed in forma pauperis and dismiss the appeal for lack of jurisdiction. We dispense with oral argu ment because the facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the materials before the court and argument would not aid the decisional process. •

DISMISSED.