Boateng v. Inter American University

190 F.R.D. 29, 1999 WL 1193093
District Court, D. Puerto Rico·Decided November 15, 1999·No. No. Civ 99-1295 JP·Published·Cited by 1 cases

Opinion

ORDER

PIERAS, Senior District Judge.

I. INTRODUCTION

The case at bar is the third in a trilogy of cases filed by Plaintiff Peter A. Boateng alleging that Defendant Inter-American University and the members of an ad hoc academic committee discriminated against him in denying him a tenured faculty position. In the instant case, Professor Boateng’s wife, Mabel Boateng, joins as Plaintiff. The Court has before it Defendants Inter-American University (“the University”), Dr. Juan Aponte, and Suzanne Laforet’s (collectively “Movants”) Motion to Dismiss under Rules 12(b)(1) and 12(b)(6) (docket No. 18) and Plaintiffs’ Opposition thereto (docket No. 26).

II. STANDARD UNDER RULES 12(B)(1) AND 12(B)(6)

Once a defendant files a Motion contesting the Court’s subject matter jurisdiction under Rule 12(b)(1), the burden of establishing jurisdiction falls on the plaintiff. See Thomson v. Gaskill, 315 U.S. 442, 62 S.Ct. 673, 86 L.Ed. 951 (1942). Therefore, if jurisdiction is premised on a federal question, the plaintiff must show that he has brought a claim arising under federal law. See Baker v. Carr, 369 U.S. 186, 82 S.Ct. 691, 7 L.Ed.2d 663 (1962). Moreover, if jurisdiction is premised on diversity of citizenship, the plaintiff must show complete diversity, and that his claim exceeds the jurisdictional minimum amount. See St. Paul Mercury Indem. Co. v. Red Cab Co., 303 U.S. 283, 58 S.Ct. 586, 82 L.Ed. 845 (1938).

Under Rule 12(b)(6) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a defendant may, in response to an initial pleading, file a motion to dismiss the complaint for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. It is well-settled, however, that “a complaint should not be dismissed for failure to state a claim unless it appears beyond doubt that the plaintiff can prove no set of facts in support of his claim which would entitle him to relief.” Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. 41, 45-46, 78 S.Ct. 99, 2 L.Ed.2d 80 (1957); see also Miranda v. Ponce Fed. Bank, 948 F.2d 41 (1st Cir.1991). The Court must accept as true the well-pleaded factual averments contained in the complaint, while at the same time drawing all reasonable inferences therefrom in favor of the plaintiff. See McDonald v. Santa Fe Trail Transp. Co., 427 U.S. 273, 276, 96 S.Ct. 2574, 49 L.Ed.2d 493 (1976); Correa-Martínez v. Arrillaga-Beléndez, 903 F.2d 49, 51 (1st Cir.1990). In opposing a Rule 12(b)(6) motion, “a plaintiff cannot expect a trial court to do his homework for him.” McCoy v. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 950 F.2d 13, 22 (1st Cir.1991). Rather, the plaintiff has an affirmative responsibility to put his best foot forward in an [31]*31effort to present a legal theory that will support his claim. See id. at 23 (citations omitted). Plaintiff must set forth in his complaint “factual allegations, either direct or inferential, regarding each material element necessary to sustain recovery under some actionable theory.” Romero-Barceló v. Her-ndndez-Agosto, 75 F.3d 23, 28 n. 8 (1st Cir. 1996) (citing Gooley v. Mobil Oil Corp., 851 F.2d 513, 514 (1st Cir.1988)).

III. PROCEDURAL AND FACTUAL BACKGROUND

In order to fully understand the arguments presented in the instant motion, it is necessary to review the procedural and factual history and between the parties. Prior to the instant case, Professor Boateng filed a Complaint in this Court against the University, its president, chancellor, Dean of the Professional Programs Division of the San Ger-mán campus, and Chairman of the Board of Trustees. Plaintiffs allegation in that case, presided by Judge Carmen C. Cerezo, was that the University denied him a tenured faculty position solely because of his race, color, and national origin in violation of Title VII of the CM Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000-e. Professor Boateng, who is from Ghana and black, had been employed at the University as a Professor of Accounting. Boateng also claimed that Defendants were liable for breach of its employment contract with him. Judge Cerezo entered final judgment on December 9, 1998, dismissing Boa-teng’s case because a parallel action had been filed in Puerto Rico State court which had been adjudicated on the merits in Defendants’ favor, barring the federal case under res judicata. The State Court entered its Findings of Fact, Conclusions of Law and Judgment on March 27, 1998 ruling that after evaluating all documentary evidence and testimony, the University had complied with its contractual obligations towards Boa-teng and that no evidence on the record suggested any discriminatory wrongdoing. After determining that filing and pursuing the Complaint in the federal case was temer-arious, Judge Cerezo imposed costs and attorneys’ fees against Plaintiff Boateng.

Plaintiffs filed the Complaint in the above styled case on March 23, 1999, raising several causes of action in connection with Professor Boateng’s employment at the Inter-American University. Although not a model of clarity, Plaintiffs, both appearing pro-se, filed the Complaint in the instant case seeking relief to correct “unlawful employment practices leading to: ... [djefamation of Dr. Peter A. Boateng’s social and professional reputation[; retaliatory actions that the [Inter-American University] officials and members of its ad hoc Committee took against [Dr. Boateng; and conspiracy dealings to arrive at a fraudulent state court judgment with misrepresentation of facts to violate [Dr. Boateng’s] legal civil rights and to deprive him of due process and equal protection of the law.” In particular, Plaintiffs allege that the members of the University’s ad hoc committee made defamatory and false manifestations that resulted in the tarnishing of Dr. Boateng’s social and professional reputation and contributed to a “fraudulent state court judgment with misrepresentations of facts which validated the unlawful dismissal of Dr. Boateng.” (Compl. at H lib). Plaintiffs also allege that the statements of the ad hoc committee in determining that Dr. Boateng committed plagiarism and thereafter during the Commonwealth Court proceedings were defamatory. Thus, Plaintiffs defamation claim arises from statements allegedly made during the ad hoc Committee’s consideration of Boateng’s tenure and dismissal and during the State court proceedings.

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Boateng v. Inter American University, 190 F.R.D. 29, 1999 WL 1193093 (prd 1999).

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