Title 28 — Judiciary and Judicial ProcedureRelease 119-73not60

§1915A Screening

Title 28 › Part V— PROCEDURE › Chapter 123— FEES AND COSTS › § 1915A

Last updated Apr 5, 2026|Official source

Summary

Courts must quickly look over any lawsuit filed by a prisoner against a government agency or a government worker. If possible, the judge will do this before the case is put on the court calendar; otherwise the judge must do it as soon as they can after filing. The judge will decide which claims can continue or will throw out all or part of the complaint if it is baseless, filed to harass, does not allege a legal wrong the court can fix, or asks for money from someone who is legally protected from paying. Prisoner here means a person held in jail or another facility who is accused of, convicted of, sentenced for, or found delinquent for crimes, or who is in custody because of parole, probation, pretrial release, or a diversion program.

Full Legal Text

Title 28, §1915A

Judiciary and Judicial Procedure — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)The court shall review, before docketing, if feasible or, in any event, as soon as practicable after docketing, a complaint in a civil action in which a prisoner seeks redress from a governmental entity or officer or employee of a governmental entity.

(b)On review, the court shall identify cognizable claims or dismiss the complaint, or any portion of the complaint, if the complaint—

(1)is frivolous, malicious, or fails to state a claim upon which relief may be granted; or

(2)seeks monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such relief.

(c)As used in this section, the term “prisoner” means any person incarcerated or detained in any facility who is accused of, convicted of, sentenced for, or adjudicated delinquent for, violations of criminal law or the terms and conditions of parole, probation, pretrial release, or diversionary program.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

28 U.S.C. § 1915A

Title 28 — Judiciary and Judicial Procedure

Last Updated

Apr 5, 2026

Release point: 119-73not60