Request for Exemption From Electronic Public Access Fees by Lakia Faison

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

IN RE REQUEST FOR EXEMPTION FROM ELECTRONIC PUBLIC ACCESS Misc. Action No. 25-171 (JEB) FEES BY LAKIA FAISON

ORDER

This matter is before the Court upon Lakia Faison’s application and request for

exemption from the fees imposed by the Electronic Public Access fee schedule adopted by the

Judicial Conference of the United States Courts. See LCvR 40.7(g) (“[T]he Chief Judge

shall . . . consider requests for exemptions by academicians, researchers and other nonlitigants

from the user access fees for the Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) service.”).

The Court finds that Faison, as a doctoral candidate at George Mason University, falls

within the class of users listed in the fee schedule as being eligible for a discretionary fee

exemption to use the PACER system. See Electronic Public Access Fee Schedule, Jud. Conf.

(Dec. 31, 2019), https://tinyurl.com/mr4xd642. Additionally, Faison has demonstrated that an

exemption is necessary in order to avoid unreasonable burdens and to promote public access to

information. Faison has shown, moreover, that the research project described in the application

is intended for scholarly research, that it is limited in scope, and that it is not intended for

redistribution on the internet or for commercial purposes.

Accordingly, the Court ORDERS that Faison shall be exempt from the payment of fees

for access via PACER to the electronic case files maintained in this court, to the extent such use

is incurred for the research purposes described in the application, and that Faison shall not be

1 exempt from the payment of fees incurred in connection with other uses of the PACER system in

this court. Additionally, the following limitations apply:

1. This fee exemption applies only to Faison and is valid only for the purposes stated

above;

2. This fee exemption applies only to the electronic case files of this Court that are

available through the PACER system;

3. By accepting this fee exemption, Faison agrees not to sell for profit any data

obtained as a result of receiving this exemption;

4. Faison is prohibited from transferring any data obtained as a result of receiving

this exemption, including redistribution via internet-based databases, unless

expressly authorized by the Court;

5. This fee exemption is granted until January 31, 2026; and

6. This fee exemption may be revoked at the discretion of the Court at any time.

The Clerk of the Court shall send a copy of this Order to the PACER Service Center.

/s/ James E. Boasberg JAMES E. BOASBERG Chief Judge Date: December 4, 2025