Veteran Must Pay

A retired Lieutenant Colonel in the Army Reserve is not eligible for treatment as an indigent for purposes of waiving court costs, according to a decision issued today by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.

Since 1974, the Legislature has demonstrated a commitment to ensuring that the doors of the Commonwealth’s courts will not be closed to the poor. This commitment is embodied in the so-called Indigent Court Costs Law, G. L. c. 261, §§ 27A-27G (§§ 27A-27G), which creates a mechanism for indigent persons to obtain waivers or reductions of court fees and other costs incurred during litigation. The statutory scheme defines “[i]ndigent persons” to include those with income below the poverty line; those who demonstrate that the payment of fees and costs would create a hardship; and those who receive “public assistance” under certain programs, including “veterans’ benefits programs.” G. L. c. 261, § 27A. The question presented in this appeal is whether a litigant such as the plaintiff, who receives Federal veterans’ benefits and a Massachusetts property tax abatement that are not dependent on his economic circumstances, is considered indigent under § 27A and therefore entitled to a waiver despite having ample financial resources to pay court fees and costs.

We conclude that the statute was not intended to provide for a waiver under these circumstances. The history of the statute reveals an unbroken chain of legislative intent to limit the definition of indigent to persons whose limited financial resources prevent them from obtaining meaningful access to the Commonwealth’s courts. In light of the statute’s history and purpose, we interpret the phrase “public assistance under . . . veterans’ benefits programs” as referring only to the Massachusetts need-based programs for veterans presently administered pursuant to G. L. c. 115, § 5. Because the plaintiff does not participate in such a program, his request for a waiver of fees and costs was properly denied.

The suit where waiver was sought “alleg[ed] various constitutional violations with respect to the presidential ballot.”

The court

we conclude that the “veterans’ benefits” program described in the first definition of                     “[i]ndigent” under G. L. c. 261, § 27A, refers to the need-based Massachusetts veterans’ benefits program presently administered pursuant to G. L. c. 115, § 5. Reade does not receive such benefits and therefore he is not indigent on that ground. Consequently, we affirm the judge’s decision denying Reade’s request for a waiver of normal and extra court fees and litigation costs.

(Mike Frisch)