KING
v.
KING

S.D. Fla. | 2021-12-22
No. 1:21-cv-23759
District Court, S.D. Florida (2021)

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Holding

The court held that the plaintiff's complaint was a shotgun pleading and failed to meet federal pleading standards.


Facts & Procedural History

Plaintiff filed a complaint against multiple defendants. Defendant Wells Fargo moved to dismiss the complaint for failing to state a claim.…

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Opinion of the Court

Accordingly, dismissal is warranted as to all Defendants. 544, 570 (2007)). Pleadings must present “more than labels and conclusions, and a formulaic recitation of the elements of a cause of action will not do[.]” Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555 (citation omitted). Plaintiff’s Complaint fails to meet the foregoing standards even under the relaxed pleading standard afforded to pro se litigants, see Arrington v. Green, 757 F. App’x 797–798 (11th

Cir. 2018) (per curiam), because it is a shotgun pleading. A complaint that violates Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8 is “often disparagingly referred to as [a] shotgun pleading[].” Weiland v. Palm Beach Cty. Sheriff's Off., 792 F. 3d 1313, 1320 (11th Cir. 2015) (internal quotation marks omitted).

The Eleventh Circuit generally considers a complaint to be a shotgun pleading if it: (1) “contain[s] multiple counts where each count adopts the allegations of all preceding counts, causing each successive count to carry all that came before and the last count to be a combination of the entire complaint,” id. at 1321; (2) is “replete with conclusory, vague, and immaterial facts not obviously connected to any particular cause of action,” id. at 1321–22; (3) fails to “separate[] into a different count each cause of action or claim for relief,” id. at 1322–23; or (4) “assert[s] multiple claims against multiple defendants without

specifying which of the defendants are responsible for which acts or omissions, or which of the defendants the claim is brought against,” id. at 1323. Shotgun pleadings “fail to give the defendants adequate notice of the claims against them and the grounds upon which each claim rests . . . and waste scarce judicial resources, inexorably broaden the scope of discovery, wreak havoc on appellate court dockets, and undermine the public’s respect for the courts.” Arrington, 757 F. App’x at 797 (citations omitted). Here, Plaintiff’s Complaint is a quintessential shotgun pleading. Plaintiff’s allegations are supported by vague facts lacking sufficient detail for the Court to discern Plaintiff’s claims.

Moreover, Plaintiff improperly commingles the Defendants by failing to specify which claims pertain to which Defendant. The Complaint is further deficient because some counts assert multiple causes of action.

Accordingly, it is ORDERED AND ADJUDGED as follows: 1. Defendant Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.’s Motion to Dismiss Plaintiff's Complaint or For More Definite Statement, [ECF No. 9], is GRANTED.

2. Plaintiff's Complaint is DISMISSED without prejudice.

3. Plaintiff may file an amended complaint within thirty (30) days of this Order. Failure to do so will result in the Court dismissing this action with prejudice.

4. This case is CLOSED for administrative purposes.

DONE AND ORDERED in Chambers at Miami, Florida, this 22nd day of December, 2021. Df

DARRIN P. GAYLES

UNITED STATES DIST JUDGE


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