Opinion
Civil Action No. 12 1927
11-15-2012
JAMES REEDOM, Plaintiff, v. SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE, Defendant.
MEMORANDUM OPINION
This matter is before the Court on plaintiff's application to proceed in forma pauperis and his pro se complaint. For the reasons stated below, the Court will grant the application and dismiss the complaint.
"Article III of the United States Constitution limits the judicial power to deciding 'Cases and Controversies.'" In re Navy Chaplaincy, 534 F.3d 756, 759 (D.C. Cir. 2008) (quoting U.S. Const, art. III, § 2), cert. denied, _ U.S. _, 129 S. Ct. 1918 (2009). A party has standing for purposes of Article III if his claims "spring from an 'injury in fact' -- an invasion of a legally protected interest that is 'concrete and particularized,' 'actual or imminent' and 'fairly traceable' to the challenged act of the defendant, and likely to be redressed by a favorable decision in the federal court." Navegar, Inc. v. United States, 103 F.3d 994, 998 (D.C. Cir. 1997) (quoting Lujan v. Defenders of Wildlife, 504 U.S. 555, 560-61 (1992)). Standing may be denied to a litigant who seeks to assert the rights of a third party. Navegar, 103 F.3d at 998. In the instant action, plaintiff appears to assert the rights of other individuals and "African American Nonprofits" which had applied for and wrongfully had been denied loans and grants purportedly available through programs of the United States Department of Agriculture. Compl. at 1. He further alleges that defendant failed to investigate claims of discrimination brought since 1983. Id. at 1-2. Plaintiff has no standing to assert claims on behalf of any organization or any other individual, and, therefore, the complaint must be dismissed. An Order is issued separately.
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United States District Judge