§ 9-15-2.Affidavit of indigence; procedure when filing party not represented by counsel

Court costs can put a lawsuit out of reach before it starts. Subsection (a) lets a party who can’t afford a required deposit, fee, or other cost subscribe an affidavit of indigence; once filed, the party is relieved from paying the costs and proceeds with the same rights as someone who paid in full. That relief isn’t automatic and unchallengeable, though — any other interested party, or that party’s agent or attorney, may file a sworn traverse affidavit contesting the truth of the indigence claim, and the court’s ruling on that factual dispute is final.

Even without a challenge from the other side, subsection (b) lets the court test an indigence affidavit on its own. After a hearing, the court may order the costs paid if it finds the party can afford them, and if payment doesn’t follow within the time the order allows, the court may deny the relief the indigent party sought. Subsection (c) keeps that cost dispute walled off from the merits — win or lose on indigence, the underlying case is decided on its own terms.

Subsection (d) adds a screening step aimed at pro se litigants using this section. When an unrepresented party presents a civil action for filing, the clerk doesn’t file it right away. Instead, the clerk routes the complaint or other initial pleading to a judge, who reviews it for a complete absence of any justiciable issue of law or fact — a pleading so weak that no court could reasonably grant relief against any named party. If the judge finds that defect, the judge denies filing outright; if not, the judge allows the pleading to be filed in the ordinary course. Either way, an order denying filing can be appealed just as a dismissal order would be.