Turner v. Abbott
| Decision Date | 01 July 2014 |
| Docket Number | Civil Action No. 13–1613 CKK |
| Citation | 53 F.Supp.3d 61 |
| Parties | Scott Turner, Plaintiff, v. Greg Abbott, et al, Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Columbia |
Scott Turner, Dallas, TX, pro se.
Susan Marie Watson, Office of the Attorney General of Texas, Austin, TX, for Defendants.
Plaintiff Scott Turner (“Plaintiff”), who is proceeding pro se, filed suit against Greg Abbott, Texas Attorney General, and the Office of the Comptroller of Currency, requesting a declaratory judgment that the Texas non judicial foreclosure statute, TEX. PROP. CODE Ch. 51, be declared unconstitutional as well as an injunction enjoining Defendants, theirs agents, representatives, and employees from enforcing, threatening to enforce, or otherwise giving effect to the Texas non judicial foreclosure statute. Presently before the Court is Defendant Greg Abbott's (“Defendant”) [4] Motion to Dismiss. Upon consideration of the pleadings,1 the relevant legal authorities, and the record as a whole, the Court finds that Plaintiff has failed to establish that this Court has personal jurisdiction over Defendant Abbott. Accordingly, Defendant's Motion is GRANTED.
For the purposes of Defendant's Motion to Dismiss, the Court presumes the following facts pled in Plaintiff's Complaint to be true, as required when considering a motion to dismiss. See Atherton v. D.C. Office of the Mayor, 567 F.3d 672, 681 (D.C.Cir.2009). Plaintiff alleges that he is the owner of land located at 6802 Hot Springs Court in Dallas County, Texas. Compl. ¶ 10. Plaintiff contracted, via the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, with AmericaHomeKey, Inc., for the purchase of this property on or about September 24, 2004. Id. ¶ 13. Shortly after the finalization of his loan, Plaintiff alleges that AmericaHomeKey, Inc. securitized the mortgage and the note was transferred to Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc., who scanned the promissory note and destroyed the original note, creating an “eNote.” Id. Plaintiff alleges that an “unknown amount of transfers, sells, exchanges, etc.” took place subsequently. Id. On or about July 12, 2013, U.S. Bank, the last purchaser of Plaintiff's mortgage and note, initiated non judicial foreclosure proceedings on Plaintiff's property. Id. ¶¶ 13, 15.
On October 18, 2013, Plaintiff filed suit against Greg Abbot and the OCC, alleging that the Texas Non–Judicial foreclosure statute, TEX. PROP. CODE. Ch. 51, and forcible detainer statutes, TEX. PROP. CODE. Ch. 24, TEX. R. CIV. P. 746, and TEX. GOV'T CODE § 27.031, are unconstitutional violations of Plaintiff's due process and equal protection rights. Id. ¶¶ 21–25. Plaintiff alleges that, together, the statutes have “created an eviction system that is inconsistent, unconstitutional and unfair to defendants in [Texas].” Id. ¶ 22. Plaintiff alleges that this action “arises out of the implementation of unconstitutional policies and procedures of Greg Abbott in his official capacity as Attorney General for the State of Texas and the failure of responsible officials in the OCC to implement policies and procedures necessary to protect the procedural due process rights of the Plaintiff.” Id. ¶ 3. Plaintiff alleges that, as a result of Defendants' “misconduct and failure to act,” he faced a “substantially greater risk of losing his home by fraudulent foreclosure practices.” Id. Plaintiff seeks from this Court a declaratory judgment that the Texas non judicial foreclosure statute be declared unconstitutional and an injunction enjoining Defendants, theirs agents, representatives, and employees from enforcing, threatening to enforce, or otherwise giving effect to the Texas non judicial foreclosure statute. Id. at 15.
On January 10, 2014, Defendant Abbott filed a Motion to Dismiss contending that (1) the Court lacks personal jurisdiction over him; (2) Plaintiff lacks standing to bring claims against him; (3) he is immune from suit under the Eleventh Amendment; and (4) Plaintiff failed to state a cause of action upon which relief may be granted. On January 22, 2014, Plaintiff filed a Memorandum in Opposition to Defendants' Motion to Dismiss and on January 29, 2014, Defendant filed a Reply. Accordingly, Defendant's Motion is now ripe for review. As the Court finds that Plaintiff has failed to establish that the Court has personal jurisdiction over Defendant Abbott, the Court need not discuss Defendant's remaining arguments for dismissal of this case, but shall dismiss this matter on the basis of personal jurisdiction alone.
Personal jurisdiction within the District of Columbia may be established under two different provisions: (1) general jurisdiction under D.C. Code § 13–422 (2001) ; and (2) specific jurisdiction under D.C. Code § 13–423 (2001). The general jurisdiction provision authorizes courts in this jurisdiction to “exercise general personal jurisdiction over a person who is ‘domiciled in, organized under the laws of, or maintaining [a] principle place of business in, the District of Columbia as to any claim for relief.’ ” Pease v. Burke, 535 F.Supp.2d 150, 152 (D.D.C.2008) (quoting D.C. Code § 13–422 ). “To establish personal jurisdiction over a nonresident, a court must ... first examine whether jurisdiction is applicable under the state's longarm statute and then determine whether a finding of jurisdiction satisfies the constitutional requirements of due process.” Thompson Hine, LLP v. Taieb, 734 F.3d 1187, 1189 (D.C.Cir.2013) (quoting GTE New Media Services, Inc. v. BellSouth Corp., 199 F.3d 1343, 1347 (D.C.Cir.2000) ). Pursuant to D.C. Code § 13–423, the District's long-arm statute, a court is authorized to exercise specific jurisdiction over a non-resident defendant who, among other things, “acts directly or by an agent, as to a claim for relief arising from the person's ... transacting any business in the District of Columbia; ... contracting to supply services in the District of Columbia; ... [or] causing tortious injury in the District of Columbia by an act or omission in the District of Columbia.” While general personal jurisdiction permits a court to hear “a suit ... without regard to the underlying claim's relationship to the defendant's activity” in the forum, specific personal jurisdiction allows only those claims “based on acts of a defendant that touch and concern the forum.” Schwartz v. CDI Japan, Ltd., 938 F.Supp. 1, 5 (D.D.C.1996) (citing Steinberg v. Int'l Criminal Police Org., 672 F.2d 927, 928 (D.C.Cir.1981) ); see also § 13–423(b) ().
District of Columbia courts have interpreted the District of Columbia's specific jurisdiction provision “to provide jurisdiction to the full extent allowed by the Due Process Clause.” United States v. Ferrara, 54 F.3d 825, 828 (D.C.Cir.1995). Accordingly, “the statutory and constitutional jurisdictional questions, which are usually distinct, merge into a single inquiry”: would exercising personal jurisdiction accord with the demands of due process? Ferrara, 54 F.3d at 828. A court's jurisdiction over a defendant satisfies due process when there are “minimum contacts,” International Shoe Co. v. Washington, 326 U.S. 310, 316, 66 S.Ct. 154, 90 L.Ed. 95 (1945), between the defendant and the forum “such that he should reasonably anticipate being haled into court there,” World–Wide Volkswagen Corp. v. Woodson, 444 U.S. 286, 297, 100 S.Ct. 559, 62 L.Ed.2d 490 (1980). Such minimum contacts must show that “the defendant purposefully avail[ed] [him]self of the privilege of conducting activities within the forum State, thus invoking the benefits and protections of its laws.” Hanson v. Denckla, 357 U.S. 235, 253, 78 S.Ct. 1228, 2 L.Ed.2d 1283 (1958).
In considering a Motion to Dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction, pursuant to Rule 12(b)(2) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the plaintiff has the burden of establishing a factual basis for the exercise of personal jurisdiction over the defendant. “[T]he general rule is that a plaintiff must make a prima facie showing of the pertinent jurisdictional facts.” First Chi. Int'l v. United Exch. Co., 836 F.2d 1375, 1378 (D.C.Cir.1988). “To make such a showing, the plaintiff is not required to adduce evidence that meets the standards of admissibility reserved for summary judgment and trial; rather, [he] may rest [his] arguments on the pleadings, ‘bolstered by such affidavits and other written materials as [he] can otherwise obtain.’ ” Urban Inst. v. FINCON Servs., 681 F.Supp.2d 41, 44 (D.D.C.2010) (quoting Mwani v. bin Laden, 417 F.3d 1, 7 (D.C.Cir.2005) ) (alteration in original). Conclusory statements, however, “[do] not constitute the prima facie showing necessary to carry the burden of establishing personal jurisdiction.” Naartex Consulting Corp. v. Watt, 722 F.2d 779, 787–88 (D.C.Cir.1983).
In order to successfully carry its burden, the plaintiff must allege “specific facts that demonstrate purposeful activity by the defendant in the District of Columbia invoking the benefits and protections of its laws.”Helmer v. Doletskaya, 290 F.Supp.2d 61, 66 (D.D.C.2003), rev'd on other grounds, 393 F.3d 201 (D.C.Cir.2004). The Court need not treat all of a plaintiff's allegations as true; rather, the Court “may receive and weigh affidavits and other relevant matter to assist in determining the jurisdictional facts.” Exponential Biotherapies, Inc. v. Houthoff Buruma N.V., 638 F.Supp.2d 1, 6 (D.D.C.2009) (citation omitted). “In determining whether such a basis exists, factual discrepancies appearing in the record must be resolved in favor of the plaintiff.” Crane v. New York Zoological Soc'y, 894 F.2d 454, 456 (D.C.Cir.1990) (citing Reuber v. United States, 750 F.2d 1039, 1052 (D.C.Cir.1984) ).
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