Amin v. Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC

Decision Date18 December 2018
Docket NumberCIVIL ACTION NO. 1:17-CV-1701-AT
Parties Sunil AMIN and Trushar Patel on Behalf of Themselves and All Others Similarly Situated, Plaintiffs, v. MERCEDES-BENZ USA, LLC, and Daimler AG, Defendants.
CourtU.S. District Court — Northern District of Georgia

Jonathan D. Selbin, Pro Hac Vice, Abbye R. Klamann, Annika K. Martin, Lieff, Cabrasher, Heiman & Bernstein, LLP, New York, NY, John T. Spragens, Pro Hac Vice, Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, Nashville, TN, Ketan A. Patel, Corpus Law Patel, LLC, Tyrone, GA, for Plaintiffs.

Adam Reinke, Madison Hunter Kitchens, Stephen B. Devereaux, King & Spalding, LLP, Atlanta, GA, for Defendants.

ORDER

Amy Totenberg, United States District Judge

I. INTRODUCTION

"Oh Lord, won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz/My friends all drive Porsches, I must make amends/Worked hard all my lifetime no help from my friends/So Lord, won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz...."1

The Court leads with this first verse from the famous Janis Joplin blues tune Mercedes Benz as it aptly sums up the subject matter of this case—Mercedes-Benz automobiles. For the Plaintiffs, good fortune bestowed upon them the opportunity to purchase a Mercedes-Benz automobile. However, as the reader will soon discover, the blissful relationship between these Plaintiffs and their respective Mercedes-Benz vehicles did not last. Rather, the relationship grew acrimonious due to an interloping third party hidden deep inside the vehicle's heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system ("HVAC System")—mold. As a result, Plaintiffs, Sunil Amin and Trushar Patel (collectively, the "Plaintiffs"), spurred in large part by the "noxious, pungent, sour, musty odor" being emitted "by the HVAC System" as well as the "unexpected, extraordinary, and costly maintenance steps ... necessary to prevent [the mold's] development," bring this putative class action against Defendants Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC ("MBUSA"), and Daimler AG ("Daimler") (collectively, the "Defendants") alleging various state statutory and common law causes of action stemming from "the design, manufacture, marketing, advertising, selling, warranting, and servicing" associated with the "heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems installed in certain categories of vehicles designed and manufactured by Daimler."2 See generally Complaint ("Compl.") (Doc. 1). Specifically, Plaintiffs assert that the HVAC System installed in these vehicles harbors a "serious design defect that causes the HVAC System to (a) accumulate mold and mildew residue or growth within the HVAC System; (b) emit a moldy or mildew odor that permeates the vehicle cabin when the HVAC System is activated; and (c) cause the Vehicle's passenger cabin to be unbearable and thus unusable for its intended purpose." See generally id. As a result, Plaintiffs have interposed the following causes of action against Daimler: (1) violations of the Georgia Fair Business Practices Act ( O.C.G.A. Section 10-1-390 ) (Count V); (2) violations of Georgia's Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act ( O.C.G.A. Section 10-1-370 ) (Count VI); (3) Breach of the Implied Warranty of Merchantability (Count VII); (4) Fraud by Concealment (Count VIII) and (5) Unjust Enrichment (Count IX). See id. Plaintiffs seek damages, declaratory and injunctive relief. Id. (Relief Requested).

Presently before the Court is Daimler's Motion to Dismiss Plaintiffs' Complaint pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6). See Notice of Motion [Doc 41]. Plaintiffs oppose the motion. For the reasons that follow, Daimler's motion to dismiss is DENIED .

II. BACKGROUND
A. The March 13, 2018 Order

On March 13, 2018, the Court issued an Order adjudicating MBUSA's motion to dismiss the Complaint. (Doc. 30).3 After summarizing the underlying facts, the Court analyzed MBUSA's attack on each of Plaintiffs' causes of action.4 Following its analysis the Court concluded that

Mercedes' Motion to Dismiss [Doc. 17] is GRANTED in part and DENIED in part. Mercedes' Motion is GRANTED as to (a) Plaintiffs' claims for breach of express warranty, (b) Magnuson-Moss breach of express warranty, (c) violation of GUDTPA regarding Mercedes' marketing and advertising. Mercedes' Motion is DENIED as to all other claims.5
B. Facts6

In light of the parties' as well as the Court's familiarity with the underlying alleged facts of this matter based upon its previous decision concerning MBUSA's motion to dismiss (which involved claims based upon the same underlying facts and circumstances as Daimler's motion) and for the sake of brevity, the Court hereby incorporates by reference the facts as set forth in its previously issued Order. See (Doc. 30 at 2 through 5).

III. STANDARD OF REVIEW

This Court may dismiss a pleading for "failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted." Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6). A pleading fails to state a claim if it does not contain allegations that support recovery under any recognizable legal theory. 5 CHARLES ALAN WRIGHT & ARTHUR R. MILLER, FEDERAL PRACTICE & PROCEDURE § 1216 (3d ed. 2002) ; see also Ashcroft v. Iqbal , 556 U.S. 662, 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009). Generally, notice pleading is all that is required for a valid complaint. See Lombard's, Inc. v. Prince Mfg., Inc. , 753 F.2d 974, 975 (11th Cir.1985), cert. denied , 474 U.S. 1082, 106 S.Ct. 851, 88 L.Ed.2d 892 (1986). Under notice pleading, the plaintiff need only give the defendant fair notice of the plaintiff's claim and the grounds upon which it rests. See Erickson v. Pardus , 551 U.S. 89, 93, 127 S.Ct. 2197, 167 L.Ed.2d 1081 (2007) (citing Bell Atlantic v. Twombly , 550 U.S. 544, 555, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007) ). In ruling on a motion to dismiss, the court must accept the facts pleaded in the complaint as true and construe them in the light most favorable to the plaintiff. See Hill v. White , 321 F.3d 1334, 1335 (11th Cir. 2003) ; see also Sanjuan v. American Bd. of Psychiatry and Neurology, Inc. , 40 F.3d 247, 251 (7th Cir.1994) (noting that at the pleading stage, the plaintiff "receives the benefit of imagination").

A complaint should be dismissed under Rule 12(b)(6) only where it appears that the facts alleged fail to state a "plausible" claim for relief. Twombly , 550 U.S. at 555-556, 127 S.Ct. 1955 ; Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6). A complaint may survive a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim, however, even if it is "improbable" that a plaintiff would be able to prove those facts and even if the possibility of recovery is extremely "remote and unlikely." Twombly , 550 U.S. at 556, 127 S.Ct. 1955 (citations and quotations omitted). A claim is plausible where the plaintiff alleges factual content that "allows the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged." Ashcroft v. Iqbal , 556 U.S. at 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937. The plausibility standard requires that a plaintiff allege sufficient facts "to raise a reasonable expectation that discovery will reveal evidence" that supports the plaintiff's claim. Twombly , 550 U.S. at 556, 127 S.Ct. 1955. A Plaintiff is not required to provide "detailed factual allegations" to survive dismissal, but the "obligation to provide the ‘grounds’ of his ‘entitle[ment] to relief’ requires more than labels and conclusions, and a formulaic recitation of the elements of a cause of action will not do." Id. at 555, 127 S.Ct. 1955.

IV. DISCUSSION
A. Preliminary Issues

1. Consideration of Additional Materials

Prior to addressing the substantive issues, the Court finds it necessary to determine whether it may consider certain documents attached as exhibits to Plaintiffs' opposition memorandum in adjudicating the instant motion. Specifically, Plaintiffs have asked the Court to consider the following documents: (1) November 30, 2012 letter from MBUSA to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration ("NHTSA") dealing with management of a safety recall involving certain Mercedes-Benz vehicles; (2) May 2017 Recall Letter involving defective steering coupling sent to Mercedes-Benz owner (owner's name and address information has been redacted); (3) March 1, 2018 Letter from Daimler and MBUSA to Chief Counsel of NHTSA concerning Takata airbag recall; (4) Mercedes-Benz Brand Communication Standards; (5) MBUSA's response to request for interrogatories in the related case, Bhatt et al. v. Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC et al. , Case No. 2:16-cv-03171 (C.D. Cal.); and (6) Daimler's Initial Disclosures in the Bhatt litigation. See Plaintiffs' Opposition to Defendant Daimler AG's Motion to Dismiss ("Pls.' Opp'n") (Doc. 45) Exhibits ("Ex.") 1-6.

In general, when analyzing a motion to dismiss pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6), the Court is limited to the four corners of the complaint and any exhibits attached thereto. See Tellabs, Inc. v. Makor Issues & Rights, Ltd. , 551 U.S. 308, 322, 127 S.Ct. 2499, 2509, 168 L.Ed.2d 179 (2007). However, matters which can be deemed "incorporated by reference," that is, those documents, attached to a motion to dismiss, and which are "(1) central to the plaintiff's claim; and (2) undisputed" may also be considered without converting the motion into one for summary judgment Horsley v. Feldt , 304 F.3d 1125, 1134 (11th Cir. 2002) (citing Harris v. Ivax Corp. , 182 F.3d 799, 802 n. 2 (11th Cir. 1999) ); see M.C. Dean, Inc. v. City of Miami Beach, Fla. , 199 F.Supp.3d 1349, 1352 (S.D. Fla. 2016) ("In addressing a Rule 12(b)(6) motion, the Court considers the allegations of the complaint, exhibits attached or incorporated by reference, and exhibits attached to the motion to dismiss if they are central to the plaintiff's claim and undisputed.") (citing Day v. Taylor , 400 F.3d 1272, 1276 (11th Cir. 2005) ). " ‘Undisputed’ in this context means that the authenticity of the document is not challenged." Horsley , 304 F.3d at 1134. A court may also consider matters of which judicial notice may be taken." Tellabs, Inc. , 551 U.S. at 322, 127 S.Ct. at 2509, 168 L.Ed.2d 179 (...

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