Johnson v. T&V Investment, Inc.

Background

Scott Johnson sued T&V Investment, Inc., and other defendants. The opinion refers to claims under the Americans with Disabilities Act and California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act. The order addresses the Unruh Act claim and states that the case was in its early stages.

Ruling on Supplemental Jurisdiction

The court declined to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over the Unruh Act claim. Supplemental jurisdiction is a federal court’s authority to hear a related state-law claim alongside a federal claim. The court relied on the considerations of judicial economy, convenience, fairness to the litigants, and comity, meaning respect for the state courts’ role. It concluded that those considerations did not favor retaining jurisdiction.

The court also cited the circumstances described in the order as an exceptional reason for declining jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1367(c)(4). Specifically, the order described the facts as involving “a frequent filer of ADA and Unruh Act claims seeking federal jurisdiction to circumvent California’s procedural barriers to such suits.” The opinion does not state that the court decided the underlying merits of the Unruh Act claim.

Further Proceedings

The order directed the defendant to notify the court within 14 days whether it wanted a three-month period of jurisdictional discovery or preferred to move directly to an evidentiary hearing. If the defendant chose discovery, the permitted subjects would include Johnson’s intent to return and whether he had personally visited the defendant’s establishment.

The order is titled “Order Dismissing Unruh Act Claim,” and its stated ruling was that the court declined to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over that claim. It does not state that the claim was dismissed with or without prejudice.