Parker v. United States

93 Fed. Cl. 159, 2010 U.S. Claims LEXIS 271, 2010 WL 2255588
CourtUnited States Court of Federal Claims
DecidedJune 2, 2010
DocketNo. 10-73L
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 93 Fed. Cl. 159 (Parker v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Court of Federal Claims primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Parker v. United States, 93 Fed. Cl. 159, 2010 U.S. Claims LEXIS 271, 2010 WL 2255588 (uscfc 2010).

Opinion

OPINION

HORN, Judge.

The plaintiff, Verlene L. Parker, filed her complaint pro se. Although the submitted papers are hard to follow, as is discussed below, plaintiff is entitled to liberal construction of the pleadings by the court. The court construes plaintiffs claim to be against the United States for purposes of its review. All claims in the United States Court of Federal Claims must have “the United States designated as the party defendant....” Rule 10(a) of the Rules of the United States Court of Federal Claims (RCFC).

Ms. Parker appears to allege that the government took her property without providing just compensation.1 The complaint states that “[i]n April 2005, the plaintiff vacated her premises for government purposes. This was due to a dispute by multiple agents over the contents in her home and the contents on the land.” The plaintiff also states that “governing authority over the telecommunication instrumentality according to Mich. Statute 213.321 Section 1(d) asked [her] to leave the premise and not to return.” The plaintiff concedes, however, that she has no written record “declaring that the property was taken by the U.S. government,” and also states that “a taking in Michigan does not mean that the USA or Michigan is occupying the property nor does it mean that the USA has the goods.” In fact, the plaintiff does not clarify what federal, government purpose or action either made it necessary for her to leave the property or could have caused a taking. She requests civilian and military records to pursue her case and cites to the United States Constitution and Michigan statutes in support of her claim.

Plaintiff requests “payment for money that would not have been spent if she had not been ordered by governing authority to leave her home, autos, boats, land and all the contents on the premises in place and never to return.” This includes “loss of entire premises (house, land, contents)” which she titles “proximate” and values at $657,800.00, relocation costs ($54,133.91), and the alleged cost of maintaining a separate piece of property owned by her husband’s rental business ($13,161.14), plus a five percent interest penalty. Subsequently, in her “Rewritten Pleading,” she requests $2,175,285.10, plus the “to be determined” cost of litigation. She also alleges a “1.0 million tort (personal injury due to stress)” claim, which, in the “Rewritten Pleading,” she asserts “will be tried as a counter claim, later in the appropriate court,” but which she subsequently withdrew from the complaint before this court.

DISCUSSION

Initially, when she filed her complaint, the plaintiff did not include the required filing fee or a request to proceed informa pauper-is. One month after the case was filed, after the court had issued an order to comply with the court’s rules, the plaintiff paid the filing-fee. The defendant responded to plaintiffs complaint by filing a motion for a more defi-[161]*161rate statement, which the court granted. The plaintiff subsequently submitted numerous additional filings, including the “Rewritten Pleading” and numerous motions and additional materials. None of the additional submissions, however, offered sufficient clarification of the nature of her claims or explained why jurisdiction can be exercised by this court. The defendant then filed a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim upon which relief may be granted or, in the alternative, for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. Plaintiff responded by submitting an “Objection to Dismissal” which repeated many of her earlier claims.

When determining whether a complaint filed by a pro se plaintiff is sufficient to invoke review by a court, pro se plaintiffs are entitled to liberal construction of their pleadings. See Haines v. Kerner, 404 U.S. 519, 520-21, 92 S.Ct. 594, 30 L.Ed.2d 652 (requiring that allegations contained in a pro se complaint be held to “less stringent standards than formal pleadings drafted by lawyers”), reh’g denied, 405 U.S. 948, 92 S.Ct. 963, 30 L.Ed.2d 819 (1972); see also Erickson v. Pardus, 551 U.S. 89, 94, 127 S.Ct. 2197, 167 L.Ed.2d 1081 (2007); Hughes v. Rowe, 449 U.S. 5, 9-10, 101 S.Ct. 173, 66 L.Ed.2d 163 (1980); Estelle v. Gamble, 429 U.S. 97, 106, 97 S.Ct. 285, 50 L.Ed.2d 251 (1976), reh’g denied, 429 U.S. 1066, 97 S.Ct. 798, 50 L.Ed.2d 785 (1977). However, “there is no ‘duty [on the part] of the trial court ... to create a claim which Lplaintiff] has not spelled out in his [or her] pleading....’” Scogin v. United States, 33 Fed.Cl. 285, 293 (1995) (quoting Clark v. Nat’l Travelers Life Ins. Co., 518 F.2d 1167, 1169 (6th Cir.1975)) (alterations in original); see also Minchan v. United States, 75 Fed.Cl. 249, 253 (2007).

“Subject-matter jurisdiction may be challenged at any time by the parties or by the court sita sponte.” Folden v. United States, 379 F.3d 1344, 1354 (Fed.Cir.), reh’g and reh’g en banc denied (Fed.Cir.2004), cert. denied, 545 U.S. 1127, 125 S.Ct. 2935, 162 L.Ed.2d 865 (2005); see also Arbaugh v. Y & H Corp., 546 U.S. 500, 506, 126 S.Ct. 1235, 163 L.Ed.2d 1097 (2006); Rick’s Mushroom Serv., Inc. v. United States, 521 F.3d 1338, 1346 (Fed.Cir.2008); Fanning, Phillips, Molnar v. West, 160 F.3d 717, 720 (Fed.Cir.1998) (quoting Booth v. United States, 990 F.2d 617, 620 (Fed.Cir.), reh’g denied (Fed.Cir.1993)); United States v. Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co., 933 F.2d 996, 998 n. 1 (Fed.Cir.1991); Thompson v. United States, 88 Fed.Cl. 263, 266 (2009); North Star Alaska Hous. Corp. v. United States, 76 Fed.Cl. 158,185, appeal dismissed, 226 Fed.Appx. 1004 (2007). “In fact, a court has a duty to inquire into its jurisdiction to hear and decide a case.” Special Devices, Inc. v. OEA, Inc., 269 F.3d 1340, 1342 (Fed.Cir.2001) (citing Johannsen v. Pay Less Drug Stores N.W., Inc., 918 F.2d 160, 161 (Fed.Cir.1990)); see also Entegris, Inc. v. Pall Corp., 490 F.3d 1340, 1343 (Fed.Cir.2007); View Eng’g, Inc. v. Robotic Vision Sys., Inc., 115 F.3d 962, 963 (Fed.Cir.1997) (“[Cjourts must always look to their jurisdiction, whether the parties raise the issue or not.”).

Pursuant to this court's rules and Rule 8(a) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a plaintiff need only state in the complaint “a short and plain statement of the grounds for the court’s jurisdiction,” and “a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief.” RCFC 8(a)(1), (2); Fed.R.Civ.P. 8(a)(1), (2). See Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly,

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
93 Fed. Cl. 159, 2010 U.S. Claims LEXIS 271, 2010 WL 2255588, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/parker-v-united-states-uscfc-2010.