Vanderkodde v. Mary Jane M. Elliott, P.C.

314 F. Supp. 3d 836
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Michigan
DecidedMay 15, 2018
DocketNo. 1:17–cv–203
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 314 F. Supp. 3d 836 (Vanderkodde v. Mary Jane M. Elliott, P.C.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Michigan primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Vanderkodde v. Mary Jane M. Elliott, P.C., 314 F. Supp. 3d 836 (W.D. Mich. 2018).

Opinion

Paul L. Maloney, United States District Judge

Plaintiffs accuse Defendants of violating the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act. There is a pending motion for class certification. But, the injuries alleged by Plaintiffs arise from orders issued by state courts. And, this Court lacks jurisdiction to consider claims that are functionally appeals of state court decisions.

The plaintiffs in this lawsuit were defendants in debt-collection lawsuits filed in state courts. In each state-court case, a *838judgment entered, which granted the state-court plaintiff prejudgment interest at a rate of 13%. Subsequently, the defendants in this lawsuit submitted, to state court clerks, requests for writs of garnishment that included post-judgment interest. In the requests for writs of garnishment, the defendants signed an affidavit attesting to the amount of judgment interest accrued to date. The plaintiffs, the defendants in the underlying state-court actions, assert that interest requested in the request for writs of garnishment was calculated at a rate not authorized by law. The plaintiffs contend that by making false, inaccurate, or misleading representations in the requests for writs of garnishment, the defendants violated the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act. Assuming the plaintiffs' accusations are accurate, the defendants may have collected tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars in interest to which they were not entitled. Plaintiffs, however, were injured by underlying judgment or the writ itself, not by the allegedly false statement in the request for the writ. The plaintiffs' remedy was to file an objection or an appeal, not a federal lawsuit. Federal district courts do not have the authority to review allegedly erroneous judgments and orders rendered in the state courts. Therefore, this Court lacks subject-matter jurisdiction and two motions to dismiss (ECF Nos. 60 and 61) must be GRANTED.

I.

Defendants have filed two motions to dismiss for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction.1 Defendant Mary Jane M. Elliott argues that this lawsuit is a collateral attack on the underlying judgments issued in state courts.2 (ECF No. 60.) Defendant Berndt & Associates argues that this lawsuit is an appeal of the writs of garnishment, which are orders issued by the state courts.3 (ECF No. 61.) Both Defendants conclude that the Rooker - Feldman doctrine applies and this Court lacks jurisdiction over the claims. Defendants bring their motion under Rule 12(b)(1) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Having reviewed the motions, the record, and the relevant law, the matter will be resolved without a hearing. W.D. Mich. LCivR 7.3(d).

A.

When challenged by a motion filed under Rule 12(b)(1), the plaintiff bears the burden of establishing subject-matter jurisdiction. EEOC v. Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church and Sch. , 597 F.3d 769, 776 (6th Cir. 2010) (citing Hollins v. Methodist Healthcare, Inc. , 474 F.3d 223, 225 (6th Cir. 2007) ). A motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(1) for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction may take the form of a facial challenge, which tests the sufficiency of the pleading, or a factual challenge, which contests the factual predicate for jurisdiction. See RMI Titanium Co. v. Westinghouse Elec. Corp. , 78 F.3d 1125, 1134 (6th Cir. 1996) (quoting Mortensen v. First Fed. Savings and Loan Ass'n , 549 F.2d 884, 890-91 (3d Cir. 1977) ); see also *839DLX, Inc. v. Kentucky , 381 F.3d 511, 516 (6th Cir. 2004) ; Ohio Nat'l Life Ins. Co. v. United States , 922 F.2d 320, 325 (6th Cir. 1990). In a facial attack, the court accepts as true all the allegations in the complaint, similar to the standard for a Rule 12(b)(6) motion. Ohio Nat'l Life Ins. Co. , 922 F.2d at 325. In a factual attack, the allegations in the complaint are not afforded a presumption of truthfulness and the district court weighs competing evidence to determine whether subject matter jurisdiction exists. Id. In this case, Defendants have made a factual challenge to the complaint. The court therefore will examine the complaint and the documents attached to determine if jurisdiction exists.4

B.

The Rooker - Feldman doctrine limits the jurisdiction of federal courts by limiting the power of federal courts from adjudicating appeals from or collateral attacks on state-court judgments and final orders. See Rooker v. Fidelity Trust Co. , 263 U.S. 413, 415-16, 44 S.Ct. 149, 68 L.Ed. 362 (1923) ; Dist. of Columbia Court of Appeals v. Feldman , 460 U.S. 462, 476, 103 S.Ct. 1303, 75 L.Ed.2d 206 (1983). "The Rooker - Feldman

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Bluebook (online)
314 F. Supp. 3d 836, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/vanderkodde-v-mary-jane-m-elliott-pc-miwd-2018.