Jones v. Experian Information Solutions, Inc.

141 F. Supp. 3d 159, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 146211, 2015 WL 6509117
CourtDistrict Court, D. Massachusetts
DecidedOctober 27, 2015
DocketCIVIL ACTION NO. 14-10218-GAO
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 141 F. Supp. 3d 159 (Jones v. Experian Information Solutions, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Massachusetts primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Jones v. Experian Information Solutions, Inc., 141 F. Supp. 3d 159, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 146211, 2015 WL 6509117 (D. Mass. 2015).

Opinion

ORDER ON PLAINTIFF’S MOTION FOR LEAVE TO FILE SECOND AMENDED VERIFIED PLEADING (#187)

M. Page Kelley, United States Magistrate Judge

On January 28, 2014, Plaintiff Paul Jones filed this lawsuit against a number of defendants, alleging violations of fair debt collection and credit reporting laws. On November 13, 2014, this Court granted Plaintiff leave to amend his complaint “to flesh out some of his remaining claims.” (#90 at 1.) Plaintiff sought leave to amend his complaint for a second time to attach two exhibits. (#118.) That motion was denied on grounds that it was unnecessary and not in the interests of justice. (#130.) [161]*161Plaintiff now seeks to amend yet again, to add several new defendants ■ and claims. (#187.) The sole remaining defendant in the case, -Revenue Assistance Corporation d/b/a/ SalesLoft (“Revenue Assistance”), has opposed. (#189.) For the reasons below,this motion is DENIED.

Many of the claims in Plaintiffs First Amended Complaint (#78-1) have been dismissed. • The remaining claims, against Revenue Assistance, are: violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (“FDCPA”), 15 U.S.C. § 1692 (count I); violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”), 47 U.S.C. § 227 (counts II and III); and violations of Massachusetts Debt Collection Regulations, 940 C.M.R. 7.00 (count IV). In the proposed Second Amended Complaint, Plaintiff seeks to add five additional defendants; two new counts under the Massachusetts Telemarketing Solicitation Act (“MTSA”), Mass. Gen. Laws c. 159C et seq., and the Massachusetts consumer protection statute, Mass.' Gen. Laws 93A et seq.-, drop his jury trial demand;' withdraw cóunts I (FDCPA) and IV (regulations); and seek injunctive relief against all defendants. (#187-1.) Revenue Assistance opposes, on grounds that Plaintiffs amendments are futile, that the proposed Complaint fails to comply with Fed. R. Civ. P. 8, and that injunctive relief is a remedy and not an independent claim. (#189 at 2-3.) I agree that the proposed amendments are futile, and deny Plaintiffs motion for leave to amend.

I. Legal Standard

Leave to amend a complaint should be “freely give[n] .., when justice so requires.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 15(a)(2); accord Edlow v. RBW, LLC, 688 F.3d 26, 39 (1st Cir.2012). However, courts have discretion to deny leave under “appropriate circumstances,” such as “undue delay, bad faith, futility, -and the absence of due diligence on- the movant’s part.” Palmer v. Champion Mortg., 465 F.3d 24, 30 (1st Cir.2006); see Edlow, 688 F.3d at 39; United States ex rel. Gagne v, City of Worcester,565 F.3d 40, 48 (1st Cir.2009). In determining- futility, the court applies the same standard as a motion to dismiss under Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6). Adorno v. Crowley Towing And Transp. Co., 443 F.3d 122, 126 (1st Cir.2006).

To survive a motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6), “a complaint ihust contain sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to ‘state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.’ ” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009) (quoting Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007)). The court “must take the allegations in the complaint as true and must make all reasonable inferences in favor of the plaintiffs.” Watterson v. Page, 987 F.2d 1, 3 (1st Cir.1993). This “highly deferential” standard of review “does not mean, however, that a cpurt must (or should) accept every allegation made by the complainant, no matter how conclusory or generalized.” United States v. AVX Corp., 962 F.2d 108, 115 (1st Cir.1992). Dismissal for failure to state a claim is appropriate when the pleadings fail to set forth “ ‘factual allegations, either direct or inferential, respecting each material element necessary to sustain recovery under some actionable legal theory.’” Berner v. Delahanty, 129 F.3d 20, 25 (1st Cir.1997) (quoting Gooley v. Mobil Oil Corp,, 851 F.2d 513, 515 (1st Cir.1988)).

II. Discfission

A. Additional. Defendants

In his motion, Jones- states- that he “has discovered through discovery that there are other defendants that need to be added to the complaint.” (#187 at ¶ 4.) However, his proposed pleading fails to [162]*162state any actionable claims against the newly named defendants.

Plaintiff points at Revenue Assistance’s CEO John J. Sheehan and VP/COO Michael Sheehan. (#187-1 at ¶¶ 3, 4.) In general, bad acts of a corporation do not automatically extend jurisdiction or liability to its officers. See, e.g., Johnson Creative Arts, Inc. v. Wool Masters, Inc., 573 F.Supp. 1106 (D.Mass.1983). To ensnare a corporate officer, there must be some showing that he or she has personally participated in, and benefited from, an illegal act. Escude Cruz v. Ortho Pharm. Corp., 619 F.2d 902, 907 (1st Cir.1980) (citing Lahr v. Adell Chemical Co., 300 F.2d 256, 260 (1st Cir.1962)). Here, Plaintiff has not alleged any facts, other than the defendants’ names and job titles, to show that these defendants could be subject to jurisdiction of this Court or that they should be held personally liable for anything they did in their professional capacity for Revenue Assistance. In many allegations, Plaintiff lumps all the defendants together as a unitary force. He does not describe any actions of “Michael” or “John” outside the scope of their corporate capacities. Therefore, the proposed Complaint fails to make out any viable claims against Michael or John Sheehan.

The proposed Complaint also lacks necessary information about the three additional defendants, Direct Energy Services, LLC (“DES”), Direct Energy Business, LLC (“DEB”), and Direct Energy Marketing, LLC (“DEM”). It states that these three companies share a business address in Houston, Texas and a resident agent in Boston.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
141 F. Supp. 3d 159, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 146211, 2015 WL 6509117, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/jones-v-experian-information-solutions-inc-mad-2015.