6.4.2 Eligibility

If your client receives federal benefits or is making less than 125% of the Federal Poverty Income Guidelines, there is a statutory presumption in favor of granting the IFP.1  Additionally, if the person’s expenses are near to or exceed their income, they may also be IFP-eligible.2  Because of the high cost of expungements, a person’s IFP eligibility might also be based on the total number of expungements to which they are entitled. For example, a person may earn sufficient wages to pay all their monthly expenses with a little bit of savings and thus might not qualify for IFP status to expunge one offense, but might be able to qualify for IFP if that person had 6 records to expunge (for a total cost of $3300).

  • 1La. C.C.P. art. 5183(B)(2).
  • 2Benjamin v. Nat’l Super Markets, Inc., 351 So. 2d 138, 142 (La. 1977).

Disclaimer: The articles in the Gillis Long Desk Manual do not contain any legal advice.