Marvalyn Mckenzie v. Christopher J. Swift, et al.

District Court, E.D. New York·Decided September 1, 2026·No. 2:24-cv-08396·Unknown

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK -----------------------------------------------------------------X MARVALYN MCKENZIE,

Plaintiff, MEMORANDUM v. AND ORDER 24-CV-8396-SJB-AYS CHRISTOPHER J. SWIFT, et al.,

Defendants. -----------------------------------------------------------------X BULSARA, United States District Judge: Plaintiff Marvalyn Mckenzie filed this pro se action against Christopher J. Swift, Hartford Funding Ltd., Stanley Middleman, Freedom Mortgage, Anthony Rooney, and Gross Polowy LLC (collectively, “Defendants”). (Compl. filed Dec. 6, 2024, Dkt. No. 1). Her Amended Complaint asserts claims arising out foreclosure proceedings against her in state court—she alleges that Defendants lacked standing to foreclose upon her mortgage and relied upon defective and fraudulent assignments to create standing in the state proceedings. (Am. Compl. dated July 24, 2025, Dkt. No. 37 at 3–6). Defendants have moved to dismiss Mckenzie’s Amended Complaint. (Defs.’ Mot. to Dismiss dated Sep. 30, 2025 (“Defs.’ Mot.”), Dkt. No. 44-1). For the reasons explained below, the motion is granted. STANDARD OF REVIEW I. 12(b)(1) Standard “A motion to dismiss an action under [Rule 12(b)(1)] raises the fundamental question of whether the federal district court has subject matter jurisdiction over the action before it[.]” 5B Charles Alan Wright & Arthur R. Miller et al., Federal Practice and Procedure § 1350 (4th ed.). “In resolving a motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(1), the district court must take all uncontroverted facts in the complaint (or petition) as true, and draw all reasonable inferences in favor of the party asserting jurisdiction.”

Collins v. United States, 996 F.3d 102, 105 n.1 (2d Cir. 2021) (quotation omitted). “[T]he plaintiff bears the burden of proving subject matter jurisdiction by a preponderance of the evidence, and [w]here jurisdictional facts are placed in dispute, the court has the power and obligation to decide issues of fact by reference to evidence outside the pleadings, such as affidavits.” Allco Fin. Ltd. v. Roisman, No. 22-2726, 2023 WL 4571965, at *1 (2d Cir. July 18, 2023) (quotations omitted). “A case is properly dismissed for lack

of subject matter jurisdiction under Rule 12(b)(1) when the district court lacks the statutory or constitutional power to adjudicate it.” Nike, Inc. v. Already, LLC, 663 F.3d 89, 94 (2d Cir. 2011) (quotation omitted), aff’d, 568 U.S. 85 (2013). II. 12(b)(6) Standard “To survive a motion to dismiss [pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6)], a complaint must 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 (2009) (quotations omitted).

“Threadbare recitals of the elements of a cause of action, supported by mere conclusory statements, do not suffice.” Id. A complaint must contain more than “naked assertion[s] devoid of further factual enhancement.” Id. (quotations omitted). In other words, a plausible claim contains “factual content that allows the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.” Id.; Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(2). “Factual allegations must be enough to raise a right to relief above the speculative level . . . on the assumption that all the allegations in the complaint are true (even if doubtful in fact)[.]” Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555 (2007) (citations omitted). The determination of whether a party has alleged a plausible claim is “a

context-specific task that requires the reviewing court to draw on its judicial experience and common sense.” Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 679. This pleading requirement “does not impose a probability standard at the motion-to-dismiss stage.” Mosaic Health, Inc. v. Sanofi-Aventis U.S., LLC, 156 F.4th 68, 77 (2d Cir. 2025) (noting that plausibility does not equate to probability). And “on a Rule 12(b)(6) motion it is not the province of the court to dismiss the complaint on the basis

of the court’s choice among plausible alternatives. Assuming that [plaintiff] can adduce sufficient evidence to support its factual allegations, the choice between or among plausible interpretations of the evidence will be a task for the factfinder.” Id. (quotations omitted). For the purpose of this motion, the Court is “required to treat” the Plaintiff’s “factual allegations as true, drawing all reasonable inferences in favor of [Plaintiff] to the extent that the inferences are plausibly supported by allegations of fact.” In re Hain

Celestial Grp., Inc. Secs. Litig., 20 F.4th 131, 133 (2d Cir. 2021). The Court “therefore recite[s] the substance of the allegations as if they represented true facts, with the understanding that these are not findings of the court, as we have no way of knowing at this stage what are the true facts.” Id. Because Mckenzie is proceeding pro se, the Court construes her Amended Complaint “to raise the strongest claims [it] suggest[s].” Sharikov v. Philips Med. Sys. MR, Inc., 103 F.4th 159, 166 (2d Cir. 2024). However, her pro se status does not permit the Court to read into her “submissions claims that are not consistent with [her] allegations, or arguments that the submissions themselves do not suggest.” Triestman v.

Fed. Bureau of Prisons, 470 F.3d 471, 477 (2d Cir. 2006) (quotation omitted). In addition to the Amended Complaint, the Court considers documents that are incorporated by reference, documents that are integral to the pleading, and documents of which the Court may take judicial notice. DiFolco v. MSNBC Cable LLC, 622 F.3d 104, 111 (2d Cir. 2010). For those documents incorporated by reference into the Amended Complaint, the Court may “permissibly consider” such documents “for the truth of

their contents.” Ark. Pub. Emps. Ret. Sys. v. Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., 28 F.4th 343, 352 n.3 (2d Cir. 2022) (quotation omitted). In addition, “a court may take judicial notice of documents filed in other courts ‘not for the truth of the matters asserted in the other litigation, but rather to establish the fact of such litigation and related filings.’” K.W. ex rel. K.A. v. City of New York, 177 F.4th 127, 137 n.5 (2d Cir. 2026) (quoting Glob. Network Commc’ns, Inc. v. City of New York, 458 F.3d 150, 157 (2d Cir. 2006)). In moving to dismiss, Defendants attach a number of documents related to the

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Marvalyn Mckenzie v. Christopher J. Swift, et al., (E.D.N.Y. 2026).

Marvalyn Mckenzie v. Christopher J. Swift, et al. (Marvalyn Mckenzie v. Christopher J. Swift, et al.) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

New Hampshire v. Maine
532 U.S. 742 (Supreme Court, 2001)
Exxon Mobil Corp. v. Saudi Basic Industries Corp.
544 U.S. 280 (Supreme Court, 2005)
Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly
550 U.S. 544 (Supreme Court, 2007)
Ashcroft v. Iqbal
556 U.S. 662 (Supreme Court, 2009)
DiFolco v. MSNBC Cable L.L.C.
622 F.3d 104 (Second Circuit, 2010)
Nike, Inc. v. ALREADY, LLC
663 F.3d 89 (Second Circuit, 2011)
Already, LLC v. Nike, Inc.
133 S. Ct. 721 (Supreme Court, 2013)
Vossbrinck v. Deutsche Bank National Trust Co.
773 F.3d 423 (Second Circuit, 2014)
Worthy-Pugh v. Deutsche Bank National Trust Company
664 F. App'x 20 (Second Circuit, 2016)
Cho Ex Rel. Situated v. City of N.Y.
910 F.3d 639 (Second Circuit, 2018)
Collins v. United States
996 F.3d 102 (Second Circuit, 2021)
Dorce v. City of New York
2 F.4th 82 (Second Circuit, 2021)
Cayuga Nation v. Howard Tanner
6 F.4th 361 (Second Circuit, 2021)
Cuoco v. Moritsugu
222 F.3d 99 (Second Circuit, 2000)
Graham v. Select Portfolio Servicing, Inc.
156 F. Supp. 3d 491 (S.D. New York, 2016)
Hansen v. Miller
52 F.4th 96 (Second Circuit, 2022)
Sharikov v. Philips Medical Systems MR, Inc.
103 F.4th 159 (Second Circuit, 2024)