Boddie v. Connecticut

Background

A group of welfare recipients in Connecticut asked the federal courts to let them file for divorce without paying required state court fees and the cost of serving papers. The complaint said the average cost to start a divorce was about $60, with a $45 filing fee and roughly $15 for service. The plaintiffs could not afford those sums. Connecticut clerks refused to accept their divorce papers until the fees were paid. A three-judge district court upheld the fee requirement and said a State may limit access by imposing fees. The Supreme Court agreed to review and then reversed the lower court.

Reasoning

The central question was whether a State may bar people from starting a divorce just because they cannot pay the required fees. The Court's majority explained that marriage and its legal end are matters of basic importance and that only the State can grant a divorce. Because the state courts were the only practical way to dissolve a marriage, denying access was equivalent to denying an opportunity to be heard. The Court held that, absent a compelling justification, due process forbids cutting off access solely for inability to pay. The opinion noted alternatives to deter frivolous suits and cheaper ways to give notice to defendants.

Real world impact

The decision means indigent people who cannot afford filing fees may not be turned away from the only court process that can end their marriages. States with similar fee or service rules must offer some means to allow access, such as fee waivers or alternative notice methods. The ruling was limited to the undisputed facts here and does not declare an absolute right to free court access in every civil case.

Dissents or concurrances

Two Justices stressed equal-protection and precedent about indigents' access to court records and appeals, while one Justice dissented, arguing states may set such fee rules and that marriage and divorce are state matters.