UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK ---------------------------------------------------------------------- X : FERNANDO NIEVES, JR., : : Plaintiff, : 24-CV-6267 (JAV) : -v- : ORDER : NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION : et al., : : Defendants. : ---------------------------------------------------------------------- X JEANNETTE A. VARGAS, United States District Judge: The Court is in receipt of Plaintiff’s letters seeking reasonable accommodations on account of his disabilities. ECF Nos. 54, 55. Plaintiff requests:

• Extended deadlines for all filings and responses • Simplified instructions and procedural guidance • Permission to submit filings in accessible formats • Consideration of equitable tolling and the continuing violation doctrine in light of my documented incapacity and the destruction of key administrative records.

Although the basis of Plaintiff’s request is unclear, to the extent that he seeks reasonable accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act,

et seq. (the “ADA”), the ADA does not apply to federal courts. See, e.g., McDowell v. McDonough, 21-CV- 0338 (JLS) (JJM),

(W.D.N.Y. Oct. 8, 2024). The ADA does not provide a basis for excusing a pro se litigant from relevant procedural rules or deadlines. Hamilton v. Robb, 18-CV-1915,

, at *2 (M.D. Pa. Mar. 12, 2020).

The Court cannot grant Plaintiff a blanket modification of all deadlines for filings and responses. The Court will, as it has in the past, afford Plaintiff additional time if his medical circumstances warrant it. Plaintiff can seek extensions of specific deadlines in accordance with Section 1.F of this Court’s Individual Rules and Practices in Civil Pro Se Cases.

For procedural guidance, requests for assistance can in the first instance be directed to the Pro Se Intake Unit at 212-805-0175 during normal business hours. The Court’s website (https://www.nysd.uscourts.gov/prose/role-of-the-prose-intake-unit/contact) also contains important information concerning proceeding pro se in this Court. There is a Pro Se Law Clinic in this District to assist parties in civil cases who do not have lawyers. The Clinic may be able to provide Plaintiff with advice in connection with this case. The Pro Se Law Clinic is run by a private organization called the City Bar Justice Center; it is not part of, or run by, the Court (and, among other things, therefore cannot accept filings on behalf of the Court, which must still be made by any unrepresented party through the Pro Se Intake Unit). The Clinic is located in the Thurgood Marshall United States Courthouse, 40 Centre Street, New York, New York. Under normal circumstances, the Clinic is open on weekdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., except on days when the Court is closed. An unrepresented party can make an appointment by visiting the Clinic’s website at https://www-.nysd.uscourts. gov/attorney/legal-assistance or by calling (212) 382-4794. With respect to the request to submit filings “in accessible formats,” Plaintiff has not explained what format he wishes to use, or how this accommodation relates to his psychiatric disability. Any such requests for accommodations can be directed at [email protected]. The Court certifies under

(a)(3) that any appeal from this Order would not be taken in good faith, and therefore in forma pauperis status is denied for the purpose of an appeal. Cf Coppedge v. United States,

(1962).

SO ORDERED. aa a I Dated: October 29, 2025 LOWMUAE GARG New York, New York JEANNETTE A. VARGAS United States District Judge