Parkes v. NYU Langone Health

Background

Tiffany-Anne Parkes, representing herself, sued NYU Langone Health, Gramercy Gynecology, and Dr. Temitope Awosogba. She alleged medical malpractice and negligence arising from an August 2020 examination and an October 28, 2020 surgery to remove uterine fibroids. She alleged that she experienced problems after surgery, including suture issues, scarring, changes in menstrual cycles and bodily functions, vomiting, abdominal pain, cramping, and sciatic pain. She also alleged that the surgery could affect future efforts to become pregnant and that later medical imaging showed internal scarring. Parkes sought $616 million in damages.

The court had previously allowed Parkes to proceed without paying filing fees. Because she proceeded without paying those fees, the court was required to dismiss any claim that was frivolous, malicious, failed to state a legally viable claim, or sought relief from an immune defendant. The court also had to dismiss claims over which it lacked authority to decide the subject matter.

Federal Question Jurisdiction

Parkes cited 22 U.S.C. § 2702 and 21 C.F.R. § 50.25 as possible bases for federal-question jurisdiction. The court explained that Section 2702 concerns malpractice actions involving physicians who work for the Department of State or another federal department, agency, or instrumentality. Parkes did not allege that any defendant worked for such an entity. The court also explained that the cited regulation applies to clinical trials regulated by the Food and Drug Administration, and Parkes did not allege that she participated in such a trial. The court therefore concluded that she failed to state a viable claim under either provision and that the complaint did not suggest another federal-law claim.

Diversity Jurisdiction

The court treated Parkes’s medical-malpractice and negligence claims as state-law claims. Such claims could proceed in federal court based on diversity jurisdiction only if Parkes and every defendant were citizens of different states. Parkes alleged that she was domiciled in New York. She also provided New York addresses for NYU Langone Health and Gramercy Gynecology and alleged that those entities were incorporated and had their principal places of business in New York. The court concluded that Parkes had not alleged facts showing complete diversity and dismissed the state-law claims for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction. The court assumed, for purposes of the order, that the alleged claims met the $75,000 jurisdictional amount requirement.

Leave to Replead and Other Rulings

The court granted Parkes 30 days to file an amended complaint containing facts showing that the court has subject-matter jurisdiction. If she relies on diversity jurisdiction, the court stated that she must provide facts about the domicile of each defendant. The court said that if she does not file an amended complaint within the allowed time, the Clerk will be directed to enter judgment.

The court dismissed the complaint for failure to state a claim and for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction, with 30 days’ leave to replead. It denied the motion to reassign the case as moot and directed the Clerk to terminate that motion. The court also certified that any appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied Parkes permission to proceed without paying fees for an appeal. The Clerk was directed to keep the matter open until a civil judgment is entered.