Rayphand shows receipt he paid docketing fees

Contrary to a U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit’s findings, Commonwealth Retirement Association board member Sapuro Rayphand has already paid the docketing and filing fees for his appeal.

Rayphand emailed Saipan Tribune on Thursday a copy of his receipt indicating he paid $455 in docketing fee on Dec. 30, 2011.

As of yesterday at 2:30pm, a check by Saipan Tribune at the U.S. District Court for the NMI showed that the 9th Circuit has yet to clarify its order regarding the docketing fees issue.

A district court staff, however, confirmed that Rayphand had already made the payment, but that a problem occurred because of the way Rayphand filed it.

The 9th Circuit is expected to issue a new order to clarify the docketing fee issue.

The 9th Circuit recently issued an order, stating that it has found out upon a review of the docket that Rayphand has not paid the docketing and filing fees for his appeal.

The Ninth Circuit gave Rayphand 21 days to comply with its order or otherwise his appeal will be automatically dismissed by the clerk for failure to prosecute.

The Ninth Circuit ordered Rayphand to file a motion to proceed in forma pauperis, and pay $455 to the district court as the docketing and filing fees for this appeal.

Forma pauperis refers to a court’s permission to an indigent to initiate a legal action without having to pay for court fees or costs due to the party’s lack of financial resources.

On Sept. 8, 2011, Rayphand, through Bruce Jorgensen, notified the District Court that he wants the Fund’s lawsuit against the CNMI government to be removed from the Superior Court and transferred to the federal court.

Rayphand stated that it has been more than two years now since Superior Court associate judge Kenneth Govendo rendered a $230 million judgment in the case yet there has been little, if any, meaningful steps toward enforcement of the judgment.

In November, U.S. District Court for the NMI designated Judge Frances M. Tydingco-Gatewood found improper Rayphand’s removal of the Fund’s lawsuit and remanded it to the Superior Court. She also ordered Rayphand to pay attorney’s fees and costs to the Fund.

Tydingco-Gatewood noted that much of Rayphand’s argument for intervention is nonsensical and unrelated to the issues at hand.

Rayphand appealed to the Ninth Circuit to reverse Tydingco-Gatewood’s order.