Miller v. Quest Diagnostics

85 F. Supp. 3d 1058, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 18552, 2015 WL 545506
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Missouri
DecidedJanuary 28, 2015
DocketNo. 2:14-cv-04278-SRB
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 85 F. Supp. 3d 1058 (Miller v. Quest Diagnostics) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Missouri primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Miller v. Quest Diagnostics, 85 F. Supp. 3d 1058, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 18552, 2015 WL 545506 (W.D. Mo. 2015).

Opinion

ORDER

STEPHEN R. BOUGH, District Judge.

Defendant Quest Diagnostics’ motion to dismiss Plaintiffs Talita Miller and Crispin Rork’s claims for violations of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) (Doc. 11), is granted in part and denied in part. Defendant’s motion is denied as to Count I and granted as to Count II.

I. Pleading Standard

Defendant brings its motion to dismiss under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6). In order to survive the motion to dismiss, Plaintiffs’ complaint must meet the standard set out in Rule 8(a), which requires that a plaintiff plead sufficient facts to state a claim upon which relief may be granted. “To survive a motion to dismiss, 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, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009) (citations omitted). A pleading that offers only “labels and conclusions” or a “formulaic recitation of the elements of a cause of action” is not sufficient. Id.

In determining whether the complaint alleges sufficient facts to state a plausible claim to relief, all factual allegations made by the plaintiff are accepted as true. Great Plains Trust Co. v. Union Pac. R.R. Co., 492 F.3d 986, 995 (8th Cir.2007) (noting that legal allegations are not accepted as true). If the facts in the complaint are sufficient for the Court to draw a reason[1060]*1060able inference that Defendant is liable for the alleged misconduct, the claim has facial plausibility and will not be dismissed. Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937.

II. Background

Plaintiffs bring this case as a putative class action, arguing that Defendant violated the FCRA through its process of obtaining consumer reports regarding prospective employees.

Plaintiffs first allege that Defendant violated the FCRA by failing to inform prospective employees that a consumer report would be obtained about them “in a document consisting solely of the disclosure.” Specifically, Plaintiffs allege that Defendant’s disclosure form contains approximately one page of information regarding state statutes and various, state-administered employee rights with respect to consumer reports, none of which applies to Plaintiffs; a release provision stating that' the signatory “fully understand^] that all employment decisions are based on legitimate non-discriminatory reasons[;]” and administrative sections marked “For Office Use Only” and “Employer Use Only.” [Complaint, Doc. 1-1, pp. 6-9].

Plaintiffs next argue that the FCRA prohibits Defendant from obtaining electronic authorizations to secure consumer reports. Plaintiffs allege that Defendant uses an electronic authorization form with electronic signatures to authorize Defendant to procure consumer reports and contend that Defendant’s failure to obtain “written authorization” to procure consumer reports violates the FCRA.

III. Discussion

The purpose of this Order is to determine whether the allegations made by Plaintiffs in the complaint are sufficient to state a claim recognized by law. At this stage of the litigation, the Court makes no findings of faet but' instead relies solely on the allegations made by Plaintiffs in the complaint.

A. Contents of Consent Form

Defendant argues that Plaintiffs’ Count I should be dismissed because Plaintiffs have failed to sufficiently allege a willful violation of the FCRA’s mandate that a consumer be notified in a document consisting “solely” of the disclosure that a consumer report will be obtained about the consumer. The FCRA requires “a clear and conspicuous disclosure has been made in writing to the consumer at any time before the report is procured or caused to be procured, in a document that consists solely of the disclosure, that a consumer report may be obtained for employment purposes[.]” 15 U.S.C. § 1681b(b)(2)(A)(i) (emphasis added).

In order for an FCRA violation to be “willful,” a defendant must either knowingly or recklessly violate the law. Safeco Ins. Co. of America v. Burr, 551 U.S. 47, 57, 127 S.Ct. 2201, 167 L.Ed.2d 1045 (2007). “[Á] company subject to FCRA does not act in reckless disregard of it unless the action is not only a violation under a reasonable reading of the statute’s terms, but shows that the company ran a risk of violating the law substantially greater than the risk associated with a reading that was merely careless.” Id. at 69, 127 S.Ct. 2201. Defendant’s willfulness must be adequately pled in the complaint if Plaintiffs are to sustain their cause of action. Miller-Huggins v. Spa-Clinic, LLC, No. 09 C 2677, 2010 WL 963924, at *2 (N.D.Ill. March 11, 2010) (“Pursuant to Iqbal, plaintiff must plead factual content that allows us to draw the reasonable inference that [defendant] knowingly or recklessly [violated the FCRA].”). “[Assertions that [Defendant] was aware. of the FCRA, but failed to comply with its requirements, are suffi[1061]*1061cient to support an allegation of willfulness and to avoid dismissal.” See Singleton v. Domino’s Pizza, LLC, Civ. Act. No. DKC 11-1823, 2012 WL 245965, at *4 (D.Md. January 25, 2012).

Defendant argues that other courts have held similar disclosure forms to be “clear and conspicuous,” and as a result, Defendant’s disclosure form comports with the FCRA. Plaintiffs do not allege a violation of the FCRA’s “clear and conspicuous disclosure” requirement, however, and the Court finds the analysis in those cases unhelpful here. Plaintiffs rely upon Burghy v. Dayton Racquet Club, Inc., a case addressing the FCRA’s “conspicuous” requirement in the context of a motion for summary judgment. 695 F.Supp.2d 689, 696 (S.D.Ohio 2010) (“[T]he issue the Court must address is whether or not the disclosure was sufficiently conspicuous, not whether it was clear.”). The Burghy Court analyzes at length the manner in which the notice is presented (ie. the text, font, bullet-point layout, etc ...) in ultimately concluding that the disclosure is conspicuous and granting summary judgment. Id. at 700.

The Burghy decision briefly addresses the FCRA’s “solely” requirement. Id. at 699. In finding the plaintiff’s argument on this point “unpersuasive” the Burghy Court concludes, “The Act specifically states that the language authorizing the employer to obtain a consumer report ... may be included alongside the language disclosing that such a report may be used for employment purposes ... [.]” Id. Here, however, Plaintiff does not argue that Defendants violated the “solely” requirement by including an authorization with its disclosure. Plaintiff alleges in the complaint, “The Defendant knew that the form they utilized to obtain consumer reports should . consist solely of the FCRA disclosure and authorization[J” [Complaint, Doc. 1-1, p. 18],

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Bluebook (online)
85 F. Supp. 3d 1058, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 18552, 2015 WL 545506, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/miller-v-quest-diagnostics-mowd-2015.