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Fifth Circuit Reverses Pre-Filing Injunction; No Notice or Hearing Given

The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has reversed a district court’s injunction prohibiting a prisoner from filing suit without first obtaining court permission.

Nasir Qureshi was enjoined by U.S. District Judge Lynn Hughes from filing “papers in Texas federal courts” without Judge Hughes’ permission. The injunction was entered after Qureshi voluntarily dismissed a tort claim suit against the Department of Homeland Security. This was the fourth suit of Qureshi had voluntarily dismissed since 2005.

Qureshi appealed the injunction arguing that it was imposed without jurisdiction. According to Qureshi, the court lost jurisdiction to impose the injunction once Qureshi dismissed the suit. The Fifth Circuit, however, concluded that the court could impose the injunction post-dismissal as an exercise of its supervisory powers.

Nevertheless, the Fifth Circuit reversed the lower court and remanded for further proceedings because Qureshi was not given notice and an opportunity to be heard before the injunction was entered. “[F]ailure to provide notice and conduct a hearing is an abuse of discretion,” the court wrote.

See: Qureshi v. United States, 600 F.3d 523 (5th Cir., 2010).

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Related legal case

Qureshi v. United States