WOODARD v. SOUTHERN TRUST INSURANCE COMPANY

1
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
MACON DIVISION
SHAUNA WOODARD, 	:
:
Plaintiff, 	:
:
v. 	: 	Case No.: 5:26-cv-446-CAR
:
SOUTHERN TRUST INSURANCE 	:
COMPANY, CEDRIC BATTLE, 	:
and ERICKA ROMAN, 	:
:
Defendants. 	:
:
ORDER DISMISSING WITHOUT PREJUDICE PLAINTIFF’S MOTION TO
PROCEED IFP AND DENYING PLAINTIFF’S MOTION TO APPOINT COUNSEL
Before the Court are pro se Plaintiff Shauna Woodard’s Motion to Proceed In Forma
Pauperis (“IFP”) and Motion to Appoint Counsel. For the reasons explained below, the
Court DISMISSES without prejudice Plaintiff’s Motion to Proceed IFP [Doc. 2] and
DENIES her Motion to Appoint Counsel [Doc. 3]. And the Court hereby ORDERS
Plaintiff to either pay the $405.00 filing fee to the Clerk of Court or, if she cannot pay, file
a renewed Motion to Proceed IFP and Affidavit in accordance with the Court’s form. If
Plaintiff does not pay the required fee or file a renewed application to proceed IFP within
fourteen (14) days from this Order’s date, the Court will dismiss this case. There will be
no service in this case until further order of the Court.
Case 5:26-cv-00446-CAR Document 4 Filed 10/14/26 Page 1 of 6

2
A. Plaintiff’s Motions
I. Motion to Proceed IFP [Doc. 2]
Motions to proceed IFP are governed by 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(1), which provides:
[A]ny court of the United States may authorize the commencement,
prosecution or defense of any suit, action or proceeding, civil or criminal,
or appeal therein, without prepayment of fees or security therefor, by a
person who submits an affidavit that includes a statement of all assets such
prisoner possesses1 that the person is unable to pay such fees or give
security therefor.
When 	considering 	a 	motion 	to 	proceed 	IFP 	filed 	under 	§ 	1915(a), 	“[t]he 	only
determination to be made by the court . . . is whether the statements in the affidavit satisfy
the requirement of poverty.”2 The Court should accept statements contained in an IFP
affidavit, “absent a serious misrepresentation.”3 Although a litigant need not show she is
“absolutely destitute” to qualify under § 1915(a), she must show that “because of h[er]
poverty, [s]he is unable to pay for the court fees and costs, and to support and provide
necessities for h[er]self and h[er] dependents.”4
Plaintiff’s application to proceed IFP fails to show she satisfies the requirement of
poverty. Despite stating that she is currently employed, Plaintiff did not list her
1 “Despite the statute’s use of the phrase ‘prisoner possesses,’ the affidavit requirement applies to all
persons requesting leave to proceed IFP.” Martinez v. Kristi Kleaners, Inc., 364 F.3d 1305, 1306 n.1 (11th Cir.
2004).
2 Martinez v. Kristi Keaners, Inc., 364 F.3d 1305, 1307 (11th Cir. 2004) (internal quotation marks and citation
omitted).
3 Id.
4 Id. (citation omitted).
Case 5:26-cv-00446-CAR Document 4 Filed 10/14/26 Page 2 of 6

3
“gross/take-home monthly pay[.]”5 Without this information, the Court cannot determine
whether Plaintiff qualifies as a pauper under § 1915. Thus, Plaintiff’s Motion [Doc. 2] is
DISMISSED without prejudice. And the Court hereby ORDERS Plaintiff to either pay
the $405.00 filing fee to the Clerk of Court or, if she cannot pay, file a renewed Motion to
Proceed IFP and Affidavit in accordance with the Court’s form. If Plaintiff does not pay
the required fee or file a renewed application to proceed IFP within fourteen (14) days
from this Order’s date, the Court will dismiss this case.
II. Motion to Appoint Counsel [Doc. 3]
Under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(1), “a court has broad discretion to appoint counsel for
an indigent plaintiff in a civil case only if exceptional circumstances exist.”6 Exceptional
circumstances include “the presence of ‘facts and legal issues [which] are so novel or
complex as to require the assistance of a trained practitioner.’”7 “The key is whether the
pro se litigant needs help in presenting the essential merits of his or her position to the
court.”8
Plaintiff fails to show any exceptional circumstance justifying an appointment of
counsel in this employment discrimination case. She contends that she cannot afford to
hire counsel after her termination and explains that attorneys with whom she consulted
5 Doc. 2 ¶ 1.
6 Redd v. Conway, 160 F. App'x 858, 863 (11th Cir. 2005) (citing Bass v. Perrin, 170 F.3d 1312, 1320 (11th Cir.
1999)).
7 Kilgo v. Ricks, 983 F.2d 189, 193 (11th Cir. 1993) (quoting Poole v. Lambert, 819 F.2d 1025, 1028 (11th Cir.
1987)).
8 Id.
Case 5:26-cv-00446-CAR Document 4 Filed 10/14/26 Page 3 of 6

4
refused to take her case due to “the 90-day EEOC clock expiring on October 15, 2026;”9
these are not exceptional circumstances. Thus, Plaintiff’s Motion [Doc. 2] is DENIED.
C. Rule 11 Obligations
The Court informs Plaintiff of her obligations under Rule 11 of the Federal Rules
of Civil Procedure, particularly Rule 11(b), which governs her representations to the
Court:
By presenting to the court a pleading, written motion, or other paper—
whether by signing, filing, submitting, or later advocating it—an attorney
or unrepresented party certifies that to the best of the person’s knowledge,
information, and belief, formed after an inquiry reasonable under the
circumstances:
(1) It is not being presented for any improper purpose, such as to harass,
cause unnecessary delay, or needlessly increase cost of litigation;
(2) the claims, defenses, and other legal contentions are warranted by
existing law or by a nonfrivolous argument for extending, modifying,
or reversing existing law or for establishing new law;
(3) the factual contentions have evidentiary support or, if specifically so
identified, will likely have evidentiary support after a reasonable
opportunity for further investigation or discovery; and
(4) the denials of factual contentions are warranted on the evidence or, if
specifically so identified, are reasonably based on belief or a lack of
information.10
D. Artificial Intelligence
Finally, the Court has seen a marked increase in the use of technology such as
ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Claude, Grok, or other generative artificial intelligence (“AI”)
services to 	prepare and 	file 	documents 	by 	unrepresented 	parties, 	who 	may 	not
9 Doc. 3.
10 Fed. R. Civ. P. 11(b).
Case 5:26-cv-00446-CAR Document 4 Filed 10/14/26 Page 4 of 6

5
understand fully their pleading obligations. The Court cautions Plaintiff that these
generative AI technologies may produce factually or legally inaccurate content.
The Court does not prohibit the use of AI, but to comply with Rule 11 of the
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, Plaintiff must review and verify all computer-generated
content (including content from legal blogs and online summaries) to ensure that it is
accurate and complies with Rule 11. To assist Plaintiff in meeting her pleading
obligations, the Court ORDERS the following: In all pleadings, including Plaintiff’s
amended complaint, Plaintiff must include a signed statement fully disclosing the use
of AI to assist in the preparation and drafting of the pleading. In the statement,
Plaintiff must certify that she has verified the accuracy of all facts and all legal
authorities cited in the pleading. Failure to comply with this paragraph will result in
sanctions, including, if appropriate, dismissal of this lawsuit.
CONCLUSION
For the reasons explained below, the Court DISMISSES without prejudice
Plaintiff’s Motion to Proceed IFP [Doc. 2] and DENIES her Motion to Appoint Counsel
[Doc. 3]. And the Court hereby ORDERS Plaintiff to either pay the $405.00 filing fee to
the Clerk of Court or, if she cannot pay, file a renewed Motion to Proceed IFP and
Affidavit in accordance with the Court’s form. If Plaintiff does not pay the required fee
or file a renewed application to proceed IFP within fourteen (14) days from this Order’s
date, the Court will dismiss this case. There will be no service in this case until further
Case 5:26-cv-00446-CAR Document 4 Filed 10/14/26 Page 5 of 6

6
order of the Court.
SO ORDERED, this 14th day of October, 2026.
s/ C. Ashley Royal__________________
C. ASHLEY ROYAL, SENIOR JUDGE
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
Case 5:26-cv-00446-CAR Document 4 Filed 10/14/26 Page 6 of 6