Mitchell v. Stubenbordt (In re Stubenbordt)
Mitchell v. Stubenbordt (In re Stubenbordt)
Opinion of the Court
This matter came before the Court on James Stubenbordt's ("Defendant") Motion to Dismiss for Failure to State a Claim and Motion for a More Definite Statement ("Motion") [Docket No. 4].
FACTUAL BACKGROUND
On October 13, 2017, Vince Mitchell ("Plaintiff"), pro se , initiated this adversary proceeding by filing a complaint ("Complaint"), alleging that Defendant fraudulently hid assets from his bankruptcy estate. Plaintiff also requested that the Court exempt his claims for unpaid wages and business loans from Defendant's bankruptcy discharge. Defendant filed the Motion in response, arguing that the Court should dismiss Plaintiff's Complaint because it failed to meet the statutory requirements of Rules 8 and 9 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. If the Complaint was not dismissed, Defendant asked the Court to direct Plaintiff to amend the Complaint to provide a more definite statement.
On November 7, 2017, a newly-hired counsel for Plaintiff filed an Answer to Defendant's Motion [Docket No. 5] and an amended complaint ("Amended Complaint") [Docket No. 6]. The Amended Complaint i) seeks a determination that all of Plaintiff's claims are non-dischargeable under
LEGAL ANALYSIS
In the context of a motion to dismiss, the Court must construe all of the allegations in the complaint as true and view the assertions "in the light most favorable to the plaintiff." Watts v. Florida Int'l Univ.,
*802Ashcroft v. Iqbal,
When a complaint alleges fraud, Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 9(b) requires that a party state with "particularity the circumstances constituting fraud." Fed. R. Civ. P. 9(b). The Eleventh Circuit explained the requirements to satisfy Rule 9(b) :
Rule 9(b) is satisfied if the complaint sets forth (1) precisely what statements were made in what documents or oral representations or what omissions were made, and (2) the time and place of each such statement and the person responsible for making (or, in the case of omissions, not making) same, and (3) the content of such statements and the manner in which they misled the plaintiff, and (4) what the defendants obtained as a consequence of the fraud.
FIA Card Servs., N.A. v. Morrow (In re Morrow),
However, a plaintiff may amend his complaint as a matter of right within 21 days after a motion filed under Rule 12(b) is served. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 15(a)(1). Here, the Amended Complaint is timely filed. Defendant has not filed a subsequent motion to dismiss the Amended Complaint, but rather filed an Answer to it. "Under the Federal Rules, an amended complaint supersedes the original complaint." Fritz v. Standard Sec. Life Ins. Co.,
CONCLUSION
Defendant's Motion to Dismiss Plaintiff's claims and Motion for a More Definite Statement is therefore DENIED as moot .
The clerk is directed to serve a copy of this Order on Plaintiff, Plaintiff's counsel, Defendant, and Defendant's counsel.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- IN RE: James Edward STUBENBORDT, Debtor. Vince Mitchell v. James Edward Stubenbordt
- Cited By
- 1 case
- Status
- Published