Janvey v. Libyan Investment Authority

164 F. Supp. 3d 910, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 176063, 2015 WL 10459614
District Court, N.D. Texas·Decided May 12, 2015·No. Civil Action No. 3:11-CV-1177-N·Published

Opinion

ORDER

David C. Godbey, United States District Judge

This Order addresses Defendants Libyan Investment Authority (“LIA”) and Libyan Foreign Investment Company’s (“LFICO”) (collectively, “Defendants”) motion to dismiss the second amended [913] complaint [136], and Defendants’ motion to strike the declaration of James C. Spindler [151]. For the reasons that follow, the Court denies the motion to strike, and grants in part and denies in part the motion to dismiss.1

I. Origin of the Motions

This case arises out of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (the “SEC”) ongoing securities fraud action against R. Allen Stanford, his associates, and various entities under his control (collectively, “Stanford”). As part of that litigation, this Court “assume[d] exclusive jurisdiction and t[ook] possession” of the “Receivership Assets” and “Receivership Records” (collectively, the “Receivership Estate”). See Second Am. Order Appointing Receiver, July 19, 2010 [1130] (the “Receivership Order”), in SEC v. Stanford Int'l Bank Ltd., Civil Action No. 3:09-CV-0298-N(N.D.Tex. filed Feb. 17, 2009). The Court appointed Plaintiff Ralph S. Janvey (the “Receiver”) to serve as receiver for the Receivership Estate and vested him with “the full power of an equity receiver under common law as well as such powers as are enumerated” in the Receivership Order. Id. at 3.

Among these enumerated powers, the Court “authorized [the Receiver] to immediately take and have complete and exclusive control, possession, and custody of the Receivership Estate and to any assets traceable to assets owned by the Receivership Estate.” Id. at 4. The Court “specifically directed and authorized [the Receiver] to ... [c]ollect, marshal, and take custody, control, and possession of all the funds, accounts, mail, and other assets of, or in the possession or under the control of, the Receivership Estate, or assets traceable to assets owned or controlled by the Receivership Estate, wherever situated,” id., and to file in this Court “such actions or proceedings to impose a constructive trust, obtain possession, and/or recover judgment with respect to persons or entities who received assets or records traceable to the Receivership Estate,” id. at 5.

The Receiver filed this action under the Texas Uniform Fraudulent Transfer Act (“TUFTA”), Tex. Bus. & Com. Code. Ann. §§ 24.001-24.013, in order to recover proceeds of Stanford International Bank, Ltd. (“SIB”) certificates of deposit (“CDs”) allegedly transferred to LIA and LFICO. The Receiver moved for a temporary restraining order (“TRO”) freezing Defendants’ funds held in accounts with Citibank, N.A. The Court issued a TRO and conducted a hearing on the Receiver’s motion for preliminary injunction on January 27, 2012. On February 29, 2012, the Court issued an Order denying the Receiver’s motion for a preliminary injunction. See Feb. 29, 2012 Order [71] (the “Preliminary Injunction Order”). Finding that the Receiver sought to clawback funds held by LIA, not LFICO, and that LIA had not itself invested in Stanford’s scheme, see id. at 4-5, the Court performed a veil-piercing analysis to determine whether LIA could be held liable for LFICO’s investments, id. at 9-12. Finding that the Receiver had failed to demonstrate that LFICO was LIA’s alter ego, the Court denied the Receiver’s motion for a preliminary injunction. The Fifth Circuit subsequently affirmed on alternate grounds. See Janvey v. Libyan Investment Authority, 478 Fed.Appx. 233, 235-36 (5th Cir.2012).2

[914] Following the denial of the Receiver’s motion for preliminary injunction, the Court granted the Receiver leave to file his second amended complaint. See Dec. 11, 2012 Order [133]; Second Am. Compl. (“SAC”) [134]. Defendants move to dismiss, arguing (1) the Court lacks subject matter jurisdiction under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (the “FSIA”), 28 U.S.C. .§§ 1602-1611; (2) the Court lacks personal jurisdiction over Defendants; (3) TUFTA does not apply extraterritorially; and (4) the Receiver has failed to state a claim for relief under TUFTA. The Court addresses each argument in turn.

II. The Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act

Defendants’ FSIA argument is twofold. First, Defendants assert the Court lacks subject matter jurisdiction over both LIA and LFICO under the FSIA. Second, Defendants argue even if LFICO is not entitled to immunity, LIA cannot be held liable for LFICO’s receipt of Stanford CD proceeds.3 The Court disagrees with Defendants’ first contention, but agrees with their second.

A. The Rule 12(b)(1) Legal Standard

Under the Constitution, a federal court may decide only actual “Cases” or “Controversies.” U.S. Const, art. Ill, § 2. “A case is properly dismissed for lack of subject matter jurisdiction when the court lacks the statutory or constitutional power to adjudicate the case.” Home Builders Ass’n of Miss., Inc. v. City of Madison, 143 F.3d 1006, 1010 (5th Cir.1998) (quoting Nowak v. Ironworkers Local 6 Pension Fund, 81 F.3d 1182, 1187 (2d Cir.1996)). “The FSIA provides the sole source of subject matter jurisdiction in suits against a foreign state.” Dale v. Colagiovanni, 443 F.3d 425, 428-29 (5th Cir.2006) (citing Argentine Republic v. Amerada Hess Shipping Corp., 488 U.S. 428, 443, 109 S.Ct. 683, 102 L.Ed.2d 818 (1989)).

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Janvey v. Libyan Investment Authority, 164 F. Supp. 3d 910, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 176063, 2015 WL 10459614 (N.D. Tex. 2015).

164 F. Supp. 3d 910 (Janvey v. Libyan Investment Authority) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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