MYSLIVECEK v. FCA US LLC

CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Michigan
DecidedDecember 23, 2022
Docket5:21-cv-10346
StatusUnknown

This text of MYSLIVECEK v. FCA US LLC (MYSLIVECEK v. FCA US LLC) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Michigan primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
MYSLIVECEK v. FCA US LLC, (E.D. Mich. 2022).

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF MICHIGAN SOUTHERN DIVISION

Dean Myslivecek, Paul Caputo, Christopher Chow, Michael Busovicki, and Kevin Schaffner, Case No. 21-10346

Plaintiffs, Judith E. Levy United States District Judge v. Mag. Judge Elizabeth A. FCA US LLC, Stafford

Defendant.

________________________________/

OPINION AND ORDER GRANTING IN PART DEFENDANT’S MOTION TO DISMISS [14]

Plaintiffs Dean Myslivecek, Paul Caputo, Christopher Chow, Michael Busovicki, and Kevin Schaffner bring this proposed nationwide class action lawsuit against Defendant FCA US LLC. Defendant manufactures and distributes Jeep branded vehicles. (ECF No. 11.) Plaintiffs assert claims related to the presence of a clutch defect in their vehicles, as well as the adequacy of the recall that Defendant provided. Before the Court is Defendant’s motion to dismiss Plaintiffs’ amended complaint for lack of subject matter jurisdiction under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(1) and for failure to state a plausible claim for relief under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6). (ECF No. 14,

PageID.247.) On May 3, 2021, Plaintiffs filed an amended complaint (ECF No. 11.) On June 3, 2021, Defendant filed a motion to dismiss the

amended complaint. (ECF No. 14.) Plaintiffs filed a response to the motion to dismiss (ECF No. 15), and Defendant filed a reply brief. (ECF No. 16.) On November 18, 2021, the Court held a hearing by video

conference and heard oral argument. In its motion, Defendant makes a factual attack on subject matter jurisdiction by providing evidence that its recall adequately fixes the

clutch defect. (See id. at PageID.270–274.) For the reasons set forth below, the Court finds that Busovicki lacks standing to bring his claims and grants Defendant’s motion to dismiss, without prejudice, as to

Busovicki. The Court also considers Defendant’s factual attack on subject matter jurisdiction and finds that there is insufficient evidence to support that it has subject matter jurisdiction over the claims brought by

Myslivecek, Chow, Schaffner, and Caputo. These Plaintiffs are granted an opportunity to present evidence demonstrating that they have standing and that their claims are not mooted by the recall. Failure to do so will result in dismissal.

I. Background Plaintiffs bring this proposed class action on behalf of themselves

and others who purchased or leased a “Class Vehicle,” defined in the amended complaint as manual-transmission “2018-2021 Jeep Wrangler[s] (2 door),” “2018-2021 Jeep Wrangler[s] Unlimited (4 door),”

and “2020-2021 Jeep Gladiator[s].” (ECF No. 11, PageID.157.) The amended complaint states that each of these vehicles “is equipped with same [sic] 3.6L V6 engine that produces an advertised 285 horsepower

and 260 lb-ft of torque.” (Id.) Plaintiffs allege that the vehicles have a “clutch defect” that causes the “friction plate . . . to slip on the flywheel, creating high temperatures” and “dangerous conditions, including fires.”

(Id. at PageID.158.) Plaintiffs also allege that one of Defendant’s recalls addressing the clutch defect—a software update that prevents the clutch from failing—is inadequate because it “effectively neuter[s]” the class

vehicles by “depriv[ing] Class Members of the benefit of their bargains – a class Vehicle equipped with a 6-speed manual transmission and a 3.6L V6 engine that produces 285 horsepower and 260 lb-ft of torque.” (Id. at PageID.159, 174–176.)

Plaintiffs’ amended complaint contains the following ten counts: Count Claim Plaintiffs

1 Breach of express warranty All individual plaintiffs and the putative national class 2 Breach of implied warranty All individual plaintiffs and the putative national class 3 Unjust enrichment All individual plaintiffs and the putative national class 4 Deceptive Acts and Myslivecek, Schaffner, and the Practices under N.Y. Gen. putative New York subclass Bus. Law § 349 5 False Advertising under Myslivecek, Schaffner, and the N.Y. Gen. Bus. Law § 350 putative New York subclass 6 Violation of the California Chow and the putative Consumer Legal Remedies California subclass Act, Cal. Civ. Code § 1750 7 Violation of the California Chow and the putative Unfair Competition Law, California subclass Bus. & Prof. Code § 17200 8 Breach of implied warranty Chow and the putative under the Song-Beverly Act, California subclass Cal. Civ. Code § 1790 9 Violation of the New Jersey Caputo and the putative New Consumer Fraud Act Jersey subclass 10 Violation of the Michigan Busovicki and the putative Consumer Protection Act, Michigan subclass Mich. Comp. Laws § 445.903 Defendant now seeks dismissal of the amended complaint under Rule 12(b)(1) on the basis that Plaintiffs lack Article III standing to bring

their claims and that the recall moots Plaintiffs’ claims. In support of its motion, Defendant provides a declaration by Dave Valley, which states

that the recalls were provided free of charge and explains how the recalls fix the clutch defect. (ECF No. 14-2.) Because “[s]tanding is . . . a threshold requirement for federal jurisdiction,” Binno v. Am. Bar Ass’n,

826 F.3d 338, 344 (6th Cir. 2016), and because the Court is required to dismiss moot claims, see Sullivan v. Benningfield, 920 F.3d 401, 410 (6th Cir. 2019), the Court focuses its analysis on Defendant’s Rule 12(b)(1)

arguments. For the reasons set forth below, Defendant’s motion is granted in part. II. Legal Standard

A. Rule 12(b)(1)

“Rule 12(b)(1) motions to dismiss for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction generally come in two varieties: a facial attack or a factual attack.” Gentek Bldg. Prods., Inc. v. Sherwin-Williams Co., 491 F.3d 320, 330 (6th Cir. 2007). A facial attack “questions [] the sufficiency of the pleading.” Rote v. Zel Custom Mfg. LLC, 816 F.3d 383, 387 (6th Cir. 2016). “When reviewing

a facial attack, a district court takes the allegations in the complaint as true.” Glob. Tech., Inc. v. Yubei (XinXiang) Power Steering Sys. Co., 807

F.3d 806, 810 (6th Cir. 2015) (quoting Gentek, 491 F.3d at 330). “If those allegations establish federal claims, jurisdiction exists.” O’Bryan v. Holy See, 556 F.3d 361, 376 (6th Cir. 2009). But “[c]onclusory

allegations or legal conclusions masquerading as factual conclusions will not suffice to prevent a motion to dismiss.” Rote, 816 F.3d at 387 (quoting O’Bryan, 556 F.3d at 376). “This approach is identical to the approach

used by the district court when reviewing a motion invoking Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6).” Glob. Tech., Inc., 807 F.3d at 810. A factual attack, by contrast, “raises a factual controversy requiring

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MYSLIVECEK v. FCA US LLC, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/myslivecek-v-fca-us-llc-mied-2022.