Buxbaum v. Smith

Background

Michael Buxbaum filed this action against Alden Smith without a lawyer. Buxbaum invoked federal diversity jurisdiction, alleging that Smith committed legal malpractice in connection with the sale of Buxbaum’s condominiums. Buxbaum identified himself as a citizen of Florida, identified Smith as a citizen of New York, and requested $1,813,000 in damages. Buxbaum paid the filing fee.

The court stated that the complaint did not describe Smith’s role or the relationship between the parties. It also did not provide enough information about what Smith allegedly did or failed to do, when and where the events occurred, or how those events injured Buxbaum. The complaint stated only that Smith “employs no legal standards for Homeowners Associations” and had legally interfered with the sale of Buxbaum’s condominiums.

Court’s analysis

The court explained that a complaint must contain a short and plain statement showing that the plaintiff is entitled to relief. It must include enough factual detail to make the claim plausible, rather than merely possible. Although courts read complaints filed by people without lawyers liberally, those complaints still must meet this basic pleading requirement.

Because the action is based on diversity jurisdiction, the court said it must apply state substantive law. The court could not determine from the complaint whether New York or Florida law governed the dispute. It explained that, under Florida law, a legal-malpractice claim requires allegations of an attorney’s employment, the attorney’s failure to perform a reasonable duty, and negligence that proximately caused the client’s loss. Under New York law, the plaintiff must establish attorney negligence, proximate cause, and actual damages. The court directed Buxbaum to plead facts sufficient to satisfy the applicable requirements.

Order

The court granted Buxbaum leave to file an amended complaint within 30 days. The amended complaint must identify relevant people and titles, describe the relevant events and what each defendant did or failed to do, provide approximate dates and general locations, describe Buxbaum’s injuries, and state the relief sought. The amended complaint will replace the original complaint rather than supplement it, so any facts or claims Buxbaum wants the court to consider must be repeated.

No summons will issue at this time. The court stated that it will dismiss the action if Buxbaum does not comply within the allowed period and cannot show good cause for the failure. The court also certified that an appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-free status for purposes of an appeal. The order directed the Clerk of Court to mail a copy to Buxbaum and record service on the docket.