Lesti v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.

960 F. Supp. 2d 1311, 2013 WL 1137482, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 37687
CourtDistrict Court, M.D. Florida
DecidedMarch 19, 2013
DocketCase No. 2:11-cv-695-FtM-29DNF
StatusPublished
Cited by15 cases

This text of 960 F. Supp. 2d 1311 (Lesti v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, M.D. Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Lesti v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., 960 F. Supp. 2d 1311, 2013 WL 1137482, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 37687 (M.D. Fla. 2013).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

JOHN E. STEELE, District Judge.

This matter comes before the Court on (1) SunTrust Bank’s Motion to Dismiss Plaintiffs’ Amended Class Action Complaint (Doc. # 35) filed on May 11, 2012, and (2) Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.’s Motion to Dismiss Amended Class Action Complaint (Doc. #43) filed on May 29, 2012. Plaintiffs filed an Omnibus Opposition (Doc. # 47) on June 22, 2012. On August 15, 2012, Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. filed a Limited Reply (Doc. # 70). Also before the Court is SunTrust’s Motion to Strike Paragraphs 42, 43, 70(v), 75(v), 83(v), and Exhibit 4 of Plaintiffs’ Amended Class Action Complaint (Doc. # 36), to which plaintiffs filed a Response (Doc. #46). The parties request oral arguments (Docs.# 37, 71.)

Defendants seek dismissal of all counts of the Amended Complaint pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6). Defendants assert that the face of the Amended Complaint establishes that each claim is barred by the statute of limitations, or alternatively, that each count fails to sufficiently set forth a cause of action upon which relief may be granted.

I.

Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8(a)(2), a Complaint must contain a “short and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 8(a)(2). This obligation “requires more than labels and conclusions, and a formulaic recitation of the elements of a cause of action will not do.” Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007) (citation omitted). To survive dismissal, a complaint must set forth factual allegations that state a claim which is “plausible on its face.” Id. at 555, 127 S.Ct. 1955. See also Edwards v. Prime Inc., 602 F.3d 1276, 1291 (11th Cir.2010). This requires facts which are more than merely possible, and must set forth enough facts to raise a reasonable expectation that discovery will reveal evidence of defendant’s liability. Twombly, 550 U.S. at 556, 127 S.Ct. 1955.

In deciding a Rule 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss, the Court must accept all factual allegations in a complaint as true and take them in the light most favorable to plaintiff, Erickson v. Pardus, 551 U.S. 89, 127 S.Ct. 2197, 167 L.Ed.2d 1081 (2007), but “[l]egal conclusions without adequate factual support are entitled to no assumption of truth,” Mamani v. Berzain, 654 F.3d 1148, 1153 (11th Cir.2011) (citations omitted). “Threadbare recitals of the elements of a cause of action, supported by mere conclusory statements, do not suffice.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009). “Factual allegations that are merely consistent with a defendant’s liability fall short of being facially plausible.” Chaparro v. Carnival Corp., 693 F.3d 1333, 1337 (11th Cir.2012) (internal quotation marks and citations omitted). Thus, the Court engages in a two-step approach: “When there are well-pleaded factual allegations, a court should assume their veracity and then determine whether they plausibly give rise to an entitlement to relief.” Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 679, 129 S.Ct. 1937.

The statute of limitations is an affirmative defense, and the burden of proving an affirmative defense is on the defendant. Tello v. Dean Witter Reynolds, Inc., 410 F.3d 1275, 1292 (11th Cir. 2005). A plaintiff is not required to anticipate and negate an affirmative defense in the complaint. La Grasta v. First Union Sec., Inc., 358 F.3d 840, 845 (11th Cir. 2004). A Rule 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss [1317]*1317on statute of limitations grounds may be granted, however, if it is apparent from the face of the complaint that the claim is time-barred. La Grasta, 358 F.3d at 845-46. Nonetheless, a motion to dismiss on statute of limitations grounds should not be granted where resolution depends either on facts not yet in evidence or on construing factual ambiguities in the complaint in defendants’ favor. Omar ex rel. Cannon v. Lindsey, 334 F.3d 1246, 1252 (11th Cir.2003).

II.

The Amended Complaint against defendants Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. (Wells Fargo) and SunTrust Bank (SunTrust) sets forth ten state law claims. In a nutshell, the Amended Complaint alleges that each bank knowingly and/or negligently assisted one of their customers and his minions with a Ponzi scheme being implemented to loot millions of dollars from innocent foreign investors. The original two plaintiffs (Lesti and Richter) refer to themselves as the Wells Fargo Plaintiffs and bring four claims against Wells Fargo. The six new plaintiffs refer to themselves as the Sun-Trust Plaintiffs and bring four claims against SunTrust. The Bankruptcy Trustee brings two claims, one against each defendant.

In the Amended Complaint, plaintiffs allege the following material facts: Ulrich Felix Anton Engler (Engler), a German citizen, owned and purported to operate Private Commercial Office, Inc. (PCO) as a day trading and investment business. (Doc. # 24, ¶ 25.) Engler solicited investments primarily from individuals and entities located in Europe. (Id., ¶ 26.) In the solicitations, Engler claimed to be a highly experienced investor who was formerly employed by Chase Manhattan Bank for 21 years, and claimed to possess sophisticated software which allowed him to quickly analyze shares of stock and capture significant investment returns before others could do so. (Id., ¶ 27.) Engler guaranteed annualized returns of 48% to 72% in his solicitation materials. (Id.)

The investments were documented by Promissory Notes and Loan Agreements between Engler and PCO, as Borrowers, and the investors, as Lenders. (Id., ¶ 28.) The loans were made payable to the Borrowers’ order at a designated account at SunTrust (prior to May 2007) and Wells Fargo (after May 2007). (Id.) Engler did not actually invest the money as he represented, but instead used the invested funds to operate a classic Ponzi scheme and make lavish personal expenditures. (Id., ¶ 29.)

A. SunTrust Accounts

Engler opened and maintained two PCO accounts at SunTrust on or about January 1, 2006 (the SunTrust Accounts), and also opened two other SunTrust accounts in the names of two different corporations. (Id., ¶¶ 34, 36.) At the time, SunTrust knew that Engler was a German national who purported to conduct a day trading/investing business at a specific location in Cape Coral, Florida. (Id.,

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Bluebook (online)
960 F. Supp. 2d 1311, 2013 WL 1137482, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 37687, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/lesti-v-wells-fargo-bank-na-flmd-2013.