Lacies Dev. Corp. v. Fed. Deposit Ins. Corp.

344 F. Supp. 3d 460
CourtUnited States District Court
DecidedNovember 5, 2018
DocketCivil No. 15-1610 (FAB)
StatusPublished

This text of 344 F. Supp. 3d 460 (Lacies Dev. Corp. v. Fed. Deposit Ins. Corp.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States District Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Lacies Dev. Corp. v. Fed. Deposit Ins. Corp., 344 F. Supp. 3d 460 (usdistct 2018).

Opinion

BESOSA, District Judge.

Defendant Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, as receiver for Doral Bank ("Doral") ("FDIC-R") moves to dismiss plaintiff Lacies Development Corporation ("Lacies")'s complaint pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure Rule 12(b)(1) (" Rule 12(b)(1)"). (Docket No. 8.) For the reasons set forth below, the Court GRANTS the FDIC-R's motion to dismiss the complaint with prejudice. (Docket No. 8.)

I. Background

In October 2013, Lacies commenced a civil action in the Puerto Rico Court of First Instance, Caguas Division, against Doral and other defendants. (Docket No. 6, Ex. 1 at pp. 1 and 4.) While the action was pending, the Office of the Commissioner of Financial Institutions closed Doral and appointed the FDIC as Doral's receiver on February 27, 2015. (Docket No. 1 at p. 1.) FDIC-R "succeeded to all of Doral's rights, titles, powers, privileges, assets, and liabilities, including Doral's interests and status as a party in this pending action." Id. at pp. 1-2 (citing 12 U.S.C. § 1821(d) ); see O'Melveny & Myers v. FDIC, 512 U.S. 79, 86, 114 S.Ct. 2048, 129 L.Ed.2d 67 (1994) (holding that pursuant to the language of 12 U.S.C. § 1821(d)(2)(A) the FDIC "steps into the shoes" of a failed institution).

On May 1, 2015, the FDIC-R notified Lacies that proofs of claim for consideration were to be submitted to it no later than June 4, 2015. (Docket No. 8, Ex. 1 at p. 5.) The FDIC-R removed the action to this Court on May 20, 2015. (Docket No. 1.) On June 8, 2015, the Court stayed the case "until September 8, 2015 or for 60 days after the disallowance of claims, whichever date [came] first," in order "[t]o allow the parties to exhaust the administrative remedies allowed by the Financial *462Institutions Reform, Recovery and Enforcement Act (FIRREA)." (Docket No. 5.)

On August 16, 2018, the FDIC-R moved to dismiss Lacies' complaint for lack of subject matter jurisdiction pursuant to Rule 12(b)(1). (Docket No. 8 at p. 1.) According to the FDIC-R, "the plaintiff[ ] did not file a Proof of Claim by the bar date and ... over three (3) years have passed since the removal was filed, without the plaintiff[ ] having filed a claim." Id. at p. 3. Lacies did not oppose the FDIC-R's motion.

II. Legal Standard

A party may move to dismiss an action for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(1). Subject-matter jurisdiction is properly invoked when a plaintiff asserts a colorable claim "arising under" the United States Constitution or federal law. 28 U.S.C. § 1331 ; Arbaugh v. Y & H Corp., 546 U.S. 500, 513, 126 S.Ct. 1235, 163 L.Ed.2d 1097 (2006) (internal citation omitted). "Generally, a claim arises under federal law within the meaning of section 1331 if a federal cause of action emerges from the face of a well-pleaded complaint." Viqueira v. First Bank, 140 F.3d 12, 17 (1st Cir. 1998) (internal citations omitted).

In considering a Rule 12(b)(1) motion, the Court "must credit the plaintiff's well-pled factual allegations and draw all reasonable inferences in the plaintiff's favor." Merlonghi v. U.S., 620 F.3d 50, 54 (1st Cir. 2010) (internal citations omitted). Federal courts are courts of limited jurisdiction, Destek Grp. v. State of N.H. Pub. Utils. Comm'n, 318 F.3d 32, 38 (1st Cir. 2003), and a court "ha[s] the duty to construe [its] jurisdictional grants narrowly." Fina Air, Inc. v. United States, 555 F.Supp.2d 321, 323 (D.P.R. 2008) (Besosa, J.) (internal citations omitted). The party asserting jurisdiction carries the burden of showing the existence of federal jurisdiction. Viqueira, 140 F.3d at 16 (internal citations omitted).

III. FIRREA Review Process

FIRREA sets forth a statutory claims process "designed to create an efficient administrative protocol for processing claims against failed banks." Marquis v. FDIC, 965 F.2d 1148, 1154 (1st Cir. 1992). Pursuant to the review process, the FDIC is required "to publish notice that the failed institution's creditors must file claims with the FDIC by a specified date, which must be at least ninety days after publication of the notice." Acosta-Ramírez v. Banco Popular de P.R., 712 F.3d 14, 19 (1st Cir.

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Related

O'Melveny & Myers v. Federal Deposit Insurance
512 U.S. 79 (Supreme Court, 1994)
Arbaugh v. Y & H Corp.
546 U.S. 500 (Supreme Court, 2006)
Merlonghi v. United States
620 F.3d 50 (First Circuit, 2010)
Simon v. Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
48 F.3d 53 (First Circuit, 1995)
Jamie Viqueira v. First Bank
140 F.3d 12 (First Circuit, 1998)
Federal Deposit Insurance v. Kane
148 F.3d 36 (First Circuit, 1998)
Acosta-Ramirez v. Banco Popular de Puerto Rico
712 F.3d 14 (First Circuit, 2013)
Fina Air Inc. v. United States
555 F. Supp. 2d 321 (D. Puerto Rico, 2008)
Wujick v. Dale & Dale, Inc.
43 F.3d 790 (Third Circuit, 1994)
Federal Deposit Insurance v. Estrada-Rivera
813 F. Supp. 2d 265 (D. Puerto Rico, 2011)
Federal Deposit Insurance v. Estrada-Colon
848 F. Supp. 2d 206 (D. Puerto Rico, 2012)

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Bluebook (online)
344 F. Supp. 3d 460, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/lacies-dev-corp-v-fed-deposit-ins-corp-usdistct-2018.