Jianyi Zhang v. Sethuraman Panchanathan

• Court: Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
• Decided: July 29, 2024
• Docket: 24-1256
• Status: Unpublished

Opinion

USCA4 Appeal: 24-1256 Doc: 10 Filed: 07/29/2024 Pg: 1 of 2

UNPUBLISHED

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

No. 24-1256

JIANYI ZHANG,

Plaintiff - Appellant,

v.

SETHURAMAN PANCHANATHAN, In his official capacity as the Director of the National Science Foundation,

Defendant - Appellee.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, at Alexandria. Leonie M. Brinkema, District Judge. (1:23-cv-01571-LMB-LRV)

Submitted: July 25, 2024 Decided: July 29, 2024

Before GREGORY, HARRIS, and QUATTLEBAUM, Circuit Judges.

Affirmed as modified by unpublished per curiam opinion.

Jianyi Zhang, Appellant Pro Se.

Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. USCA4 Appeal: 24-1256 Doc: 10 Filed: 07/29/2024 Pg: 2 of 2

PER CURIAM:

Jianyi Zhang appeals the district court’s order dismissing his complaint with

prejudice for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. On appeal, we confine our review to the

issues raised in the informal brief. See 4th Cir. R. 34(b). Because Zhang’s informal brief

does not challenge the basis for the district court’s disposition, he has forfeited appellate

review of the court’s order. See Jackson v. Lightsey, 775 F.3d 170, 177 (4th Cir. 2014)

(“The informal brief is an important document; under Fourth Circuit rules, our review is

limited to issues preserved in that brief.”). To the extent that Zhang challenges the district

court’s decision to dismiss his claim rather than granting leave to amend, a court does not

abuse its discretion “by declining to grant a motion [for leave to amend] that was never

properly made.” Cozzarelli v. Inspire Pharms. Inc., 549 F.3d 618, 631 (4th Cir. 2008).

However, because the basis of the court’s dismissal of the complaint was a lack of

subject matter jurisdiction, the dismissal must be without prejudice. Ali v. Hogan, 26 F.4th

587, 600 (4th Cir. 2022) (“A dismissal for lack of standing—or any defect in subject matter

jurisdiction—must be one without prejudice, because a court has no power to adjudicate

and dispose of a claim on the merits.” (cleaned up)). Accordingly, we affirm the district

court’s order as modified to reflect that the dismissal is without prejudice. We dispense

with oral argument because the facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the

materials before this court and argument would not aid the decisional process.

AFFIRMED AS MODIFIED