Connor v. Ford Motor Co.

172 F.R.D. 375, 1997 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 6046, 1997 WL 223073
District Court, N.D. Illinois·Decided April 25, 1997·No. No. 96 C 8343·Published

Opinion

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

LINDBERG, District Judge.

Defendant, Ford Motor Company, has filed a motion to dismiss the complaint of plaintiff, Pamela Connor, pursuant to Rule 12(b)(1) (lack of subject matter jurisdiction), Rule 12(b)(6) (failure to state a claim for relief), and Rule 12(b)(7) (failure to join a party under Rule 19). Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(l)(6)(7), 19. Plaintiffs complaint alleges violation of the Federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, 15 U.S.C. § 2301; violation of the Illinois Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act (“Consumer Fraud Act”), 815 ILCS 505/1; breach of the implied warranty of merchantability, 810 ILCS 5/2-314; and common law' [377] fraud in connection with her purchase of an automobile manufactured by defendant. Defendant’s motion will be denied.

BACKGROUND

Plaintiff alleges she purchased in February 1996 tinder a retail installment contract a model-year 1995 Thunderbird manufactured by defendant. The purchase price, including all registration, document, sales tax and financing charges, was $27,166.25. The transaction included a three-year or 36,000 mile warranty. Plaintiff alleges that defendant represented the vehicle was “new” despite its having been driven 6,850 miles. Plaintiff further alleges the vehicle had various warranty defects for which she sought the assistance of the Dispute Settlement Board (“DSB”), an entity established by defendant to render decisions regarding consumers’ warranty problems. (The DSB’s decisions are binding upon defendant, but may be rejected by vehicle owners.) After experiencing numerous warranty problems, plaintiff sought the assistance of the DSB. At a hearing conducted on September 12, 1996, the DSB awarded plaintiff the right to either a replacement vehicle or a refund of her purchase price. The purchase price was to include all taxes, fees, prepayment penalties and early termination charges, plus interest paid to date. Plaintiff opted for the full refund on September 20, 1996 by executing and delivering to defendant an “Acceptance of Decision”. However, defendant’s agent, John Schacht, later informed plaintiff on or about November 11, 1996 that the refund would be reduced by $3,215.85 to compensate defendant for “negative equity” on the vehicle traded for the Thunderbird, and that no credit for interest and miscellaneous other charges would be allowed. Plaintiff claims she is entitled to the refund originally determined by the DSB — the full purchase price of $27,166.25 plus interest which continues to accrue while the vehicle remains in her possession.

The complaint makes a breach of warranty claim under the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act (Count I); a state law claim for breach of implied warranty of merchantability (Count H); claims for breach of the Illinois Consumer Fraud Act (Counts III and TV); and claims for common law fraud (Counts V and VI).

DISCUSSION

Rule 12(b)(1)

Defendant has moved to dismiss the complaint in its entirety, pursuant to Rule 12(b)(1), for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(1). The district court has “original jurisdiction where the matter in controversy exceeds $50,0001 exclusive of interest and costs, and (1) is between citizens of different States.” 28 U.S.C. § 1332(a). Because defendant is a citizen of the State of Michigan and plaintiff is a citizen of Illinois, the sole disputed issue is whether the $50,000 threshold is met.

Unless it appears to a legal certainty that a claim is for less than the jurisdictional amount, a district court shall accept a plaintiffs good faith allegation of the amount in controversy. Rexford Rand Corp. v. Ancel, 58 F.3d 1215, 1218 (7th Cir.1995). Here, the amount in controversy is $27,166.25, the purchase price of the vehicle. It is conceivable that plaintiff could recover damages under the statutes pled in excess of the minimum $50,000. This conclusion is based on awards of punitive damages under the Consumer Fraud Act in substantially similar automobile cases. See Martin v. Heinold Commodities, Inc., 163 Ill.2d 33, 205 Ill.Dec. 443, 466, 643 N.E.2d 734, 757 (1994). Moreover, plaintiff may be entitled to attorneys’ fees under the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, 15 U.S.C. § 2301. Thus, this court has original jurisdiction over this controversy. Consequently, the complaint will not be dismissed for lack of subject matter jurisdiction.

Rule 12(b)(7)

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Connor v. Ford Motor Co., 172 F.R.D. 375, 1997 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 6046, 1997 WL 223073 (N.D. Ill. 1997).

172 F.R.D. 375 (Connor v. Ford Motor Co.) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

Hishon v. King & Spalding
467 U.S. 69 (Supreme Court, 1984)
Rexford Rand Corporation v. Gregory Ancel
58 F.3d 1215 (Seventh Circuit, 1995)
Martin v. Heinold Commodities, Inc.
643 N.E.2d 734 (Illinois Supreme Court, 1994)