Thomas v. United States

56 Fed. Cl. 112, 91 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 1831, 2003 U.S. Claims LEXIS 88, 2003 WL 1868977
United States Court of Federal Claims·Decided April 7, 2003·No. No. 99-345T·Published·Cited by 40 cases

Opinion

OPINION

BUSH, Judge.

On May 27, 1999, plaintiff Tunde Thomas filed a complaint in this court claiming that he did not receive certain income tax refunds for tax returns which he filed from 1990 to 1998. Mr. Thomas also seeks additional damages in the amount of $20 million from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for failing to make the claimed payments. It also appears that plaintiff alleges that the IRS was negligent in the handling of his tax returns. Finally, Mr. Thomas requests a court-appointed attorney, claiming that he is unable to afford counsel 1

[114] On June 1, 2001, defendant filed a Motion to Dismiss, in part, and Motion for Summary-Judgment. Plaintiff did not file a response to defendant’s brief in the allotted time and thus, on December 11, 2001, the court ordered plaintiff to file a response, on or before January 11, 2002, showing cause why the court should not grant defendant’s dispositive motions. On January 2, 2002, the Clerk’s office received a letter from plaintiff stating that he did not plan on responding to any further motions and wished the court to proceed in rendering its decision. Therefore, the court deemed the subject letter as plaintiffs response to the court’s December 11, 2001 order and directed the Clerk’s office to file plaintiffs letter.

I. Motion to Dismiss Pursuant to 12(b)(1)

a. Standard of Review for a Motion to Dismiss for Lack of Subject Matter Jurisdiction

Jurisdiction may be challenged by the parties or by the court on its own at any time, and if jurisdiction is found lacking, this court must dismiss the action. Rule 12(h)(3) of the Rules of the Court of Federal Claims (RCFC). The court’s determination of jurisdiction starts with the complaint, “which must be well-pleaded in that it must state the necessary elements of the plaintiffs claim, independent of any defense that may be interposed.” Holley v. United States, 124 F.3d 1462, 1465 (Fed.Cir.1997) (citations omitted). However, pleadings drafted by pro se plaintiffs are held to a less stringent standard than pleadings drafted by attorneys. Troutman v. United States, 51 Fed.Cl. 527, 531 (2002). In rendering a decision on a motion to dismiss for lack of subject matter jurisdiction pursuant to RCFC 12(b)(1), this court must presume all undisputed factual allegations to be true and construe all reasonable inferences in favor of the plaintiff. Scheuer v. Rhodes, 416 U.S. 232, 236-37, 94 S.Ct. 1683, 40 L.Ed.2d 90 (1974); Reynolds v. Army & Air Force Exch. Serv., 846 F.2d 746, 747 (Fed.Cir.1988). The court should not grant a motion to dismiss “unless it appears beyond doubt that the plaintiff can prove no set of facts in support of his claim which would entitle him to relief.” Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. 41, 45-46, 78 S.Ct. 99, 2 [115] L.Ed.2d 80 (1957) (footnote omitted). Nonetheless, the non-movant bears the burden of establishing subject matter jurisdiction by a preponderance of the evidence. Cubic Def. Sys., Inc. v. United States, 45 Fed.Cl. 239, 245 (1999) (citing Cedars-Sinai Med. Ctr. v. Watkins, 11 F.3d 1573, 1583 (Fed.Cir.1993); Reynolds, 846 F.2d at 748; Maniere v. United States, 31 Fed.Cl. 410, 413 (1994)). Therefore, as the Supreme Court noted, federal courts may not entertain claims which would otherwise be in their jurisdiction if the claims are “ ‘so attenuated and unsubstantial as to be absolutely devoid of merit,’ ‘wholly insubstantial,’ ‘obviously frivolous,’ ‘plainly unsubstantial,’ or ‘no longer open to discussion.’” Hagans v. Lavine, 415 U.S. 528, 536-37, 94 S.Ct. 1372, 1379, 39 L.Ed.2d 577 (1974). The Court further notes that “ ‘(t)he question, may be plainly unsubstantial, either because it is “obviously without merit” or because its unsoundness so clearly results from the previous decisions of this court as to foreclose the subject and leave no room for the inference that the question sought to be raised can be the subject of controversy.’ ” Id. at 537, 94 S.Ct. 1372. The court may make any factual findings necessary to adjudicate this motion, including findings on matters not raised in the pleadings. Indium Corp. of Am., Inc. v. Semi-Alloys, Inc., 781 F.2d 879, 884 (Fed.Cir.1985), cert. denied, 479 U.S. 820, 107 S.Ct. 84, 93 L.Ed.2d 37 (1986).

b. COFC Jurisdiction

The Tucker Act delineates this court’s jurisdiction. 28 U.S.C. § 1491 (1994). The Tucker Act does not create a substantive right to recover money damages in this court; rather, it allows recovery for claims founded on the Constitution, an act of Congress, regulation promulgated by the executive department, or any express or implied contract with the United States. 28 U.S.C. § 1491(a)(1); Ky. Bridge & Dam, Inc. v. United States, 42 Fed.Cl. 501, 516 (1998) (citing United States v. Mitchell, 445 U.S. 535, 538, 100 S.Ct. 1349, 63 L.Ed.2d 607, reh’g denied, 446 U.S. 992, 100 S.Ct. 2979, 64 L.Ed.2d 849 (1980); United States v. Testan, 424 U.S. 392, 398-99, 96 S.Ct. 948, 47 L.Ed.2d 114 (1976); United States v. Connolly, 716 F.2d 882, 885 (Fed.Cir.1983) (en banc), cert. denied, 465 U.S. 1065, 104 S.Ct. 1414, 79 L.Ed.2d 740 (1984)). A statute, regulation, or constitutional provision provides a substantive right only if it “‘can fairly be interpreted as mandating compensation by the Federal Government for the damage sustained.’ ” Testan, 424 U.S. at 400, 96 S.Ct. at 955 (quoting Eastport S.S. Corp. v. United States, 372 F.2d 1002, 1009, 178 Ct. Cl. 599 (1967); citing Mosca v. United States, 417 F.2d 1382, 1386, 189 Ct.Cl. 283, 290 (1969), cert. denied, 399 U.S. 911, 90 S.Ct. 2197, 26 L.Ed.2d 565 (1970)). If the provision is found to be “money-mandating,” the party need not rely upon a waiver of sovereign immunity beyond the Tucker Act. See Huston v. United States, 956 F.2d 259, 261 (Fed.Cir.1992) (citing Mitchell, 463 U.S. at 218,103 S.Ct. at 2968).

c. Jurisdiction over tax refund claims

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Thomas v. United States, 56 Fed. Cl. 112, 91 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 1831, 2003 U.S. Claims LEXIS 88, 2003 WL 1868977 (uscfc 2003).

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