Alshaary v. c/o Citadel Property Management

Background

Hafad H. Alshaary filed the action without a lawyer on October 6, 2023, seeking $120,000 in damages. He alleged that the defendants violated his rights as a tenant by closing and evicting his business without a court order or eviction notice. The opinion states that Alshaary resides in New York, New York, and that the defendants allegedly also reside in New York, New York.

The court questioned whether it had subject-matter jurisdiction, meaning legal authority to hear the case. It ordered Alshaary to explain why the action should not be dismissed. In response, he submitted a letter and materials concerning the alleged eviction, rent payments, the lease, photographs, emails, and damages.

Court’s analysis

The court concluded that neither the complaint nor the response showed a federal-law claim. They also did not plead facts establishing diversity jurisdiction, which generally requires the parties to be citizens of different states. The court therefore found that Alshaary had not adequately pleaded jurisdiction under either 28 U.S.C. § 1331, which covers federal-question jurisdiction, or 28 U.S.C. § 1332, which covers diversity jurisdiction.

Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(h)(3), a court must dismiss an action whenever it determines that subject-matter jurisdiction is lacking. The court also considered the filings liberally because Alshaary was representing himself, but found that even the strongest claims suggested by those filings did not establish federal jurisdiction.

Disposition

The court dismissed the action for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction. It granted Alshaary leave to amend his complaint and required him to do so by November 23, 2023. The court stated that a federal-court jurisdictional dismissal did not prevent Alshaary from bringing the matter in state court. Judge Gregory H. Woods directed the Clerk of Court to mail Alshaary a copy of the order.