Cunningham v. Foresters Fin. Servs., Inc.
Cunningham v. Foresters Fin. Servs., Inc.
Opinion of the Court
RUDY LOZANO, Judge *1009This matter is before the Court on the Renewed Motion of Defendants Angela Harris aka Angela Roach, and Insurance Professionals of America, Inc., to Dismiss, filed on May 25, 2017 (DE # 26), the Motion to Dismiss filed by Octavia Pugh on June 19, 2017 (DE # 31), Defendant Gil Swets' Motion to Clarify Relief Sought in Angela Harris aka Angela Roach and Insurance Professionals of America, Inc.'s (together, "Harris Defendants") Motion to Dismiss and Notice of Non-consent to Transfer, filed on August 10, 2017 (DE # 49), and the Motion to Dismiss of Defendants Foresters Financial Holding Company, Inc. and Foresters Financial Services, Inc. (together, "Foresters Defendants") filed on August 25, 2017 (DE # 57). For the reasons set forth below, the Harris Defendants' renewed motion to dismiss is GRANTED (DE # 26). Defendant Octavia Pugh's motion to dismiss is GRANTED (DE # 31), Defendant Gil Swets' motion to clarify relief sought is DENIED AS MOOT (DE # 49), and Foresters Defendants' motion to dismiss is GRANTED IN PART AND DENIED IN PART (DE # 57). The claim against Foresters Financial Services, Inc. for violation of
BACKGROUND
Plaintiff Craig Cunningham ("Plaintiff"), who is proceeding pro se , brought this action against more than twenty defendants alleging that the Foresters Defendants engaged in a scheme with the other defendants to market their services through the use of pre-recorded messages in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act,
Defendant Octavia Pugh ("Pugh") filed a motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction and failure to state a claim. (DE # 31.) Plaintiff filed a response to this motion. Pugh did not file a reply. Finally, the Foresters Defendants filed a motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction and failure to state a claim. (DE # 57.) Plaintiff filed a response to the Forester Defendants' motion, and the Forester Defendants filed a reply brief.
DISCUSSION
Facts
Plaintiff's Amended Complaint ("Complaint") alleges, in relevant part, the following:
*1010Plaintiff is a natural person living in Nashville, Tennessee. (DE # 22, ¶ 1.) Defendant Foresters Financial Services, Inc. ("FFSI") is a Tennessee corporation that can be served in Tennessee. (Id. , ¶ 2.) Defendant Foresters Financial Holding Company, Inc. ("FFHCI") is a Delaware corporation that can be served in Delaware. (Id. , ¶ 4.) Defendant Pugh is a Tennessee licensed insurance agent who can be served in Georgia. (Id. , ¶ 3.) Defendant Swets is a Tennessee licensed insurance agent who can be served in Indiana. (Id. , ¶ 5.) Defendant Insurance Professionals of America, Inc. ("IPA") is a Florida corporation that can be served in Florida. (Id. , ¶ 19.) Defendant Angela Harris aka Angela Roach ("Harris") is the sole corporate officer of IPA and can be served in Florida. (Id. , ¶ 20.) The Complaint names 19 additional defendants, all of whom are residents or corporations of the states of Florida, Texas, Mississippi, or North Carolina. (Id. , ¶¶ 6-18, 21-26.)
The Complaint alleges that personal jurisdiction is apparent as the defendants are making calls from the state of Indiana for the purpose of soliciting Tennessee residents to purchase life insurance and engage Indiana and Tennessee licensed insurance agents to sell policies. (Id. , ¶ 28.) Swets is an Indiana resident who allegedly placed illegal telemarketing calls to Plaintiff in an attempt to sell Plaintiff insurance from the Foresters Defendants. (Id. , ¶ 29.) The Foresters Defendants allegedly delegated its marketing duties to the co-defendants, and ratified the conduct of the co-defendants by accepting the referrals and sales generated by the illegal calls on behalf of the Foresters Defendants, and actively participated in the telemarketing calls through the actions of its agents. (Id. , ¶ 33.) The co-defendants allegedly contacted, and/or caused to be contacted on their behalf, Plaintiff without his prior express written consent within the meaning of the TCPA. (Id. )
The co-defendants allegedly made autodialed and prerecorded message calls on behalf of the Foresters Defendants, who are legally responsible for ensuring that the co-defendants complied with the TCPA. (Id. , ¶¶ 42, 46, 100, 104.) "Foresters relies on a series of third parties ('Foresters agents') to promote its goods or services. In fact, if an individual wanted to purchase Foresters products, the Foresters website advises 'You can purchase Foresters quality insurance products through a network of independent life insurance agents....' " (Id. , ¶ 48.) The Foresters Defendants allegedly knew that the telemarketers violated the TCPA on their behalf and failed to take effective steps within their power to force the telemarketers to cease that conduct. (Id. , ¶¶ 47, 101-03.) The Complaint asserts that the Forester Defendants are liable under the theories of direct liability, actual liability, ratification, and apparent authority. (Id. , ¶¶ 53-76.) The Foresters Defendants' agents solicit applications for insurance on the Foresters Defendants' behalf, and the co-defendants did so using pre-recording telemarketing. (Id. , ¶ 61.) The Foresters Defendants directed *1011the quality, timing, geographic location and volume of co-defendants' applicants. (Id. , ¶ 62.)
In 2016, Plaintiff allegedly received over 40 unwanted automated calls to Plaintiff's cell phones. (Id. , ¶¶ 77-78.) Many of the calls included the following message: "Attention all seniors between the ages of 55 and 85 years of age who may not have life insurance or are concerned they may not have enough. You have been qualified for a plan that will never expire and premiums that will never go up. Press 1 now. There are no medical exams for this coverage and you can be insured as early as tonight." (Id. , ¶ 79.) Agents of the telemarketers stated that the website for the company was oraclesig.com. (Id. , ¶ 80.) On some calls, Plaintiff was able to speak with agents in the call centers and determined that they were all selling final expense life insurance by the Foresters Defendants. (Id. , ¶ 81.) Plaintiff once spoke with an agent named Dave and asked him where he got the leads for these calls. (Id. , ¶ 81.) Dave responded, "I think they go through a dialer," and indicated the calls were initiated using an automated telephone dialing system and that some demographic information was input into a dialer system, such as age, income, and state. (Id. , ¶ 81.) Dave also stated, "Its [sic ] a computer program we use, and it is programmed to make phone calls. There is nobody else involved." (Id. , ¶ 83.)
In another call that was a result of an automated telephone call with a pre-recorded message, Plaintiff spoke with Pugh, who was allegedly an agent/employee of IPA. (Id. , ¶ 88.) Plaintiff also received a call from Pugh's supervisor at her request and the supervisor indicated that they both worked IPA. (Id. ) The supervisor indicated that they had several approved lead vendors for agents/employees of IPA to obtain leads, that IPA purchased leads, which are provided to their agents, indicating that IPA paid the telemarketers directly to call Plaintiff. (Id. , ¶¶ 89-90.) Pugh indicated to Plaintiff that she purchased leads from Oracle Senior Insurance Group, Inc., and that was the reason why Plaintiff had received a call for life insurance. (Id. , ¶ 91.)
The Complaint asserts violations of the TCPA,
Motions to Dismiss for Lack of Personal Jurisdiction
A defendant may move for dismissal of a complaint based on a lack of personal jurisdiction under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(2). Plaintiff bears the burden of establishing that personal jurisdiction exists, but because the issue is raised in a motion to dismiss, he need only make a prima facie showing of jurisdictional facts. Felland v. Clifton ,
For personal jurisdiction to be consistent with due process, a defendant must have established "certain minimum contacts with [the forum] such that the maintenance of the suit does not offend traditional notions of fair play and substantial justice." Helicopteros Nacionales de Colombia, S.A. v. Hall,
The Harris Defendants argue that the Court has neither general nor specific jurisdiction over them. In support, they proffer the affidavit of Harris, in which she attests that she has never: lived in Indiana; done business in Indiana; had any clients in Indiana; or called or solicited prospective clients in Indiana. (DE # 26-3.) As the principal shareholder of IPA, Harris also attests that IPA's principal place of business is in Florida, all of its agents are located in Florida, none of its agents are licensed to do business in Indiana, it has no clients or customers in Indiana, and IPA's phone records show that its agents have never made a phone call to any Indiana number. (Id. )
Plaintiff's one-page response to the Harris Defendants' motion to dismiss does not assert that the Court has personal jurisdiction over the Harris Defendants. Rather, it merely states that he agrees that the claims against the Harris Defendants *1013should be transferred to the appropriate district court in Florida. (DE # 32 at 1.) Because Plaintiff does not argue or allege that the Court has general jurisdiction over the Harris Defendants, he has "waived any general jurisdiction argument." RAR, Inc. v. Turner Diesel, Ltd.,
Pugh, who is proceeding pro se , also moves to dismiss based on lack of personal jurisdiction. Pugh does not proffer an affidavit supporting her motion, though she supplemented her motion to provide her address, which is located in Georgia. (DE # 46.) In response, Plaintiff makes no effort to demonstrate Pugh's contacts with Indiana, but notes that Pugh fails to state why the Court lacks personal jurisdiction over her or proffer supporting evidence. (DE # 48 at 2.) Pugh did not file a reply brief.
The Complaint does not indicate that this Court has a basis for general or specific personal jurisdiction over Pugh. The Complaint alleges that Plaintiff is a Tennessee resident and that Pugh is a Tennessee-licensed insurance agent who can be served in Georgia. (DE # 22, ¶¶ 1, 3.) It also alleges that Plaintiff spoke to Pugh as a result of an automated telephone call with a pre-recorded message, and that Pugh's purchase of leads was the reason Plaintiff had received the automated telephone call.
The Foresters Defendants similarly argue that the Court does not have personal jurisdiction over FFHCI. In support, they proffer the Affidavit of Francis Gannon ("Gannon"). Gannon attests that FFHCI is incorporated in the State of Delaware, does not have any offices, or own or lease any property in Indiana. (DE # 58-2 at 2.) Gannon further attests that FFHCI does not conduct any business operations in Indiana, market or sell any products or services in Indiana, maintain a telephone number in Indiana, have a registered agent or any employees, or have any contracts with any persons or entities located in Indiana. (Id. )
Plaintiff does not respond with any argument supporting the Court's personal jurisdiction over FFHCI. Rather, he states that "[t]o the extent that the court lacks personal jurisdiction over one of the Forester's [sic ] entities, the court should dismiss the case without prejudice." (DE # 64 at 3.) Given the unrefuted evidence of *1014FFHCI's lack of contacts with the State of Indiana, the Court finds that it does not have personal jurisdiction over FFHCI.
Motion to Dismiss for Failure to State a Claim
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6) allows a complaint to be dismissed if it fails to "state a claim upon which relief can be granted." Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6). In order to survive a Rule 12(b)(6) motion, the complaint "must contain sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to 'state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face'." Ashcroft v. Iqbal,
The Complaint asserts that the defendants violated the TCPA,
Theories of Liability
The Foresters Defendants challenge the four theories of liability alleged against them in the Complaint: direct liability, vicarious liability, ratification and apparent authority. They maintain that the Complaint fails to allege direct liability because it fails to allege that they made any of the telephone calls at issue. See Vessal v. Alarm.com, No.
*1015Turning to Plaintiff's other theories of liability, a party may be held vicariously liable for a TCPA violation committed by a third-party "under federal common law principles of agency." Dish Network,
The Foresters Defendants assert that the Complaint fails to plead that the co-defendants were acting as their agents. See Smith v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co. , No.
In Charvat v. Allstate Corporation ,
Here, the Complaint does not allege details regarding the relationships between the Foresters Defendants and other defendants, but Plaintiff cannot reasonably be expected to know such information at this stage of litigation. While Plaintiff must ultimately prove each individual defendant's role and relationship to those who made the calls, at this stage, he need only generally allege his agency claim so as to provide each defendant notice of the claims against them. See
Automated Telephone Dialing System
The Foresters Defendants also argue that the Complaint fails to adequately allege that the calls Plaintiff received were placed by an automated telephone dialing system ("ATDS").
The Foresters Defendants maintain that the Complaint's allegations are insufficient to suggest that the calling system "had the functionality and technical characteristics of an ATDS." (DE # 58 at 18.) District courts in this circuit have held that "a TCPA plaintiff should not be expected to plead details regarding the technical functionality of the alleged ATDS," rather, "the complaint must include at least some facts to support the conclusion that an ATDS was used." Izsak v. Draftkings, Inc.,
Here, the Complaint alleges that Plaintiff received calls with a "pre-recorded message" about life insurance, and provides a quote of that message. (DE # 22, ¶ 79.) It alleges that after Plaintiff pressed 1 as directed by the pre-recorded message, he once spoke with an agent named Dave and asked him where he got the leads for these calls. (Id. , ¶ 81.) Dave allegedly responded, "I think they go through a dialer." (Id. , ¶ 81.) Dave also allegedly stated, "Its [sic ] a computer program we use, and it is programmed to make phone calls. There is nobody else involved." (Id. , ¶ 83.) The Court finds that these allegations meet Plaintiff's minimal burden of alleging the necessary facts to show that the calls at issue were made using an ATDS.
The Complaint also alleges that defendants violated Section 227(c)(5) of the TPCA by failing to maintain a do-not-call list. (DE # 22, Count I.) Section 227(c)(5) provides a private right of action on behalf of "[a] person who has received more than one telephone call within any 12-month period by or on behalf of the same entity in violation of the regulations prescribed under this subsection...."
The Foresters Defendants argue that the Section 227(c)(5) claim must be dismissed because the Complaint fails to allege that the telephone numbers on which Plaintiff allegedly received the calls *1018at issue were residential telephone numbers. Plaintiff responds that he adequately pled that the calls were made to a residential line because he "only uses a cell phone," and "that is the only type of telephone [he] had in use at the time at [his] place of residence." (DE # 64 at 2.) "The Court may consider additional facts alleged in the response to a motion to dismiss if the facts are consistent with the allegations of the complaint." Baker v. Certified Payment Processing, L.P., No. 16-cv-03002,
Motion to Clarify
Swets moves for clarification of the relief sought in the Harris Defendants' motion, specifically, the request to transfer the case to a federal district court in Florida. Swets, a resident of Indiana, indicates that he does not consent to the transfer of this case to Florida. Because the Court grants the Harris Defendants' motion to dismiss, their request to transfer the case to Florida is moot. Therefore, the Court denies Swets' motion for clarification as moot.
CONCLUSION
For the reasons set forth above, the Harris Defendants' renewed motion to dismiss is GRANTED (DE # 26). Defendant Octavia Pugh's motion to dismiss is GRANTED (DE # 31), Defendant Gil Swets' motion to clarify relief sought is DENIED AS MOOT (DE # 49), and Foresters Defendants' motion to dismiss is GRANTED IN PART AND DENIED IN PART (DE # 57). The claim against FFSI for a violation of
Where a defendant moves to dismiss a complaint pursuant to Rule 12(b)(2), the plaintiff bears the burden of demonstrating the existence of jurisdiction. Purdue Research Found. v. Sanofi-Synthelabo, S.A.,
The Clerk entered default judgment against defendants Michael Samaroo, Mahendra Samaroo, American Insurance Group, LLC, Nicholas Politi, Jay Politi, Nationwide Senior Marketing, Inc., Nationwide Senior Service, Inc., and Katie Boling on August 16, 2017. (DE # 56.)
While the Complaint alleges that Pugh was an agent/employee of IPA, IPA has proffered an uncontested affidavit that Pugh has never been an agent or employee of IPA. (DE # 26-3, ¶ 11.)
The Foresters Defendants also argue that the TCPA claim should be dismissed because the Complaint is a shotgun pleading that impermissibly lumps together the defendants and the alleged calls. See Bentley v. Bank of Am., N.A.,
Because the Court finds a basis for vicarious liability under the agency theory of actual authority, it need not address whether Plaintiff has sufficiently pleaded a basis for liability under ratification or apparent authority theories. See Mauer ,
The statute defines the term "automatic telephone dialing system" as "equipment which has the capacity to store or produce telephone numbers to be called, using a random or sequential number generator; and to dial such numbers."
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Craig CUNNINGHAM v. FORESTERS FINANCIAL SERVICES, INC., Octavia Pugh, Fosters Financial Holding Company, Inc., Gil Swets, Michael Samaroo, Mahendra Samaroo, America Insurance Group, LLC, Oracle Senior Insurance Group, Inc., Jason Gsoell, Insurance Professionals of America, Inc., Angela Harris aka Angela Roach, VIPCO Advisors, Inc., Jay Politi, Apptical Corp., United Life Associates, LLC, Andrew Decos, Glea Gsoell, Pinnacle Senior Insurance Group Corp., Nationwide Senior Marketing, Inc., I Click Advanced Marketing Company, Katie Boling, Nicholas Politi, Nationwide Senior Service Inc., Axis Benefit Solutions Inc., Axis Advisory Group Inc., and Roderic Boling
- Cited By
- 15 cases
- Status
- Published