Fricton v. OCONTO COUNTY ASCS, USDA

723 F. Supp. 1312, 1989 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13235, 1989 WL 133745
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Wisconsin
DecidedNovember 6, 1989
DocketCiv. A. 89-C-1081
StatusPublished

This text of 723 F. Supp. 1312 (Fricton v. OCONTO COUNTY ASCS, USDA) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Wisconsin primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Fricton v. OCONTO COUNTY ASCS, USDA, 723 F. Supp. 1312, 1989 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13235, 1989 WL 133745 (E.D. Wis. 1989).

Opinion

DECISION AND ORDER

REYNOLDS, Senior District Judge.

FACTS

On August 17, 1989, Gary Fricton (“Fricton”), proceeding pro se, commenced a breach of contract claim against the above-named defendants in the Small Claims Branch of the Circuit Court of Oconto County, Wisconsin. Fricton claimed that he had entered into an agreement with the United States Department of Agriculture (“USDA”) under the Dairy Termination Program where he agreed not to produce milk, milk products, and milk producing animals in return for payments from the USDA. Fricton alleged that the executive director of the Oconto County Agriculture Stabilization and Conservation Service (“ASCS”), James Lukas (“Lukas”), wrongfully withheld $2,095.34 due to him under the agreement because Fricton was undergoing foreclosure on his farm.

On September 1, 1989, the defendants removed Fricton’s claim to this court. Removal was proper pursuant to Title 28 U.S.C. § 1441(e) because this court has jurisdiction over Fricton’s complaint pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1346(a)(2) which grants federal district courts original jurisdiction over civil actions or claims against the United States that do not exceed $10,000.

On September 26, 1989, the defendants moved this court to dismiss Fricton’s claim on three grounds: (1) Fricton improperly served the defendants, (2) this court lacks subject matter jurisdiction to hear Fricton’s claim, and (3) Fricton has failed to name the proper party as a defendant. In addition, the USDA moved this court to dismiss Fricton’s claim against it on the ground that it is a nonsuable government agency. Although Fricton has not responded to the defendants motion, this court denies ASCS and Lukas’ motion on all three grounds, and grants the USDA’s motion because the USDA is a nonsuable government agency.

DISCUSSION

I. SERVICE OF PROCESS

All of the defendants are represented by the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, and each claims that they were improperly served with a copy of the summons and complaint. The Oconto County ASCS and the USDA claim Fricton did not send a copy of the summons and complaint by registered mail to both the United States Attorney for the district in which his action was brought and to the Attorney General of the United States in Washington, D.C., as required "by Fed.R. Civ.P. 4(d)(4). In addition, defendant Lukas claims he was not properly served in his official capacity under Rule 4(d)(5) or in his individual capacity under Rule 4(d)(1).

Fricton, however, did serve a copy of the summons and complaint on Oconto County on August 17, 1989, in accordance with the Wisconsin statutes governing service of process in small claims disputes, Wis.Stat. §§ 799.05 and 799.12 (1989). This service satisfied the requirements for service of process on defendant Oconto County ASCS as long as ASCS is a county, versus feder *1314 al, governmental organization. 1 Rule 4(d)(6) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure states that service can occur:

Upon a state or municipal corporation or other governmental organization thereof subject to suit, by delivering a copy of the summons and of the complaint to the chief executive officer thereof or by serving the summons and complaint in the manner prescribed by the law of that state for the service of summons or other like process upon any such defendant.

(emphasis added).

The service, however, does not satisfy the requirements of Fed.R.Civ.P. 4(d)(4) for serving the USDA or Lukas. This court, therefore, could dismiss Fricton’s claim against these two defendants for improper service. This question, however, is moot for the USDA because Fricton’s claim against it is dismissed on other grounds. If, however, dismissal of the claim against Lukas were ordered because service was improper, then justice would require that Fricton, as a pro se plaintiff, be given the opportunity to serve Lukas properly and to move this court to vacate the order of dismissal. In addition, justice also would require this court to explain to Fricton how to serve Lukas. Thus, in essence, a dismissal order would merely postpone this court from hearing and deciding the substantive issue of whether or not Fricton is entitled to $2,095.34 from Lukas.

This court prefers whenever possible to hear and decide a controversy on the substantive issues, especially when a pro se plaintiff is involved. The primary objective of requiring a plaintiff under Fed.R.Civ.P. 4 to serve the defendant with a summons and a copy of the complaint is to inform the defendant that a claim has been commenced against him. Thus, this court agrees with the position that:

The general attitude of the federal courts is that the provision of Rule 4 should be liberally construed in the interest of doing substantial justice and that the propriety of service in each case should turn on it own facts within the limits of the flexibility provided by the rule itself. This is consistent with the modern conception of service of process as primarily a notice-giving device.

Wright & Miller, Federal Practice and Procedure: Civil 2d § 1083 (1989) (footnotes omitted). Moreover, this court believes that a liberal construction of Rule 4 should occur when the plaintiff is proceeding pro se and the defendant is the United States. Thus, because Fricton immediately served a summons and a copy of the complaint on Oconto County and this service had the effect of fully informing each of the defendants of the pending claim against them, defendants’ motion to dismiss for improper service is denied.

II. SUBJECT MATTER JURISDICTION

Defendants have moved this court to dismiss Fricton’s claim on the ground that this court does not have subject matter jurisdiction over the claim because the removal from state court was improper. This court finds this argument ironic because it is being made by the party who removed the case. More importantly, however, the argument is wrong as a matter of law. Essentially, the defendants argue that this court does not have jurisdiction over Fricton’s claim because removal jurisdiction is purely derivative and the Oconto County state court never had subject matter jurisdiction over Fricton’s claim. This court need not decide whether or not the state court had jurisdiction over Fricton’s claim because 28 U.S.C. § 1441(e) definitively states that removal jurisdiction does not derive from the state court having jurisdiction:

The court to which such civil action is removed is not precluded

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
723 F. Supp. 1312, 1989 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13235, 1989 WL 133745, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/fricton-v-oconto-county-ascs-usda-wied-1989.