Ringcentral, Inc. v. Quimby et al
Filing
98
ORDER DENYING MOTION TO DISMISS FIRST AMENDED COMPLAINT. Further Case Management Conference set for 3/1/2012 10:00 AM in Courtroom 3, 17th Floor, San Francisco. Signed by Judge Richard Seeborg on 2/1/12. (cl, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 2/1/2012)
**E-filed 2/1/12**
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
8
FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
9
SAN FRANCISCO DIVISION
11
For the Northern District of California
United States District Court
10
12
13
RINGCENTRAL, INC.,
Plaintiff,
v.
14
15
ORDER DENYING MOTION TO
DISMISS FIRST AMENDED
COMPLAINT
BILL QUIMBY, et al.,
16
No. C 09-2693 RS
Defendants.
____________________________________/
17
18
19
This motion to dismiss brought by defendants TollFreeNumbers.Com, Inc. and its principal,
20
Bill Quimby, challenges two basic aspects of plaintiff RingCentral, Inc.’s First Amended
21
Complaint. First, defendants contend that the amendments RingCentral has made to its previously-
22
dismissed claims arising from allegations that defendants engaged in a “targeted campaign” of
23
disparagement remain insufficient. Second, defendants argue that they are not subject to personal
24
jurisdiction for claims RingCentral has added to this action that were previously dismissed without
25
prejudice in a related case, Case No. 11-1835 RS, (“RingCentral II”). Pursuant to Civil Local Rule
26
7-1(b), the motion was submitted without oral argument. For the following reasons, it will be
27
denied.
28
1
A. Claims imported from RingCentral II
2
The order dismissing RingCentral II concluded that there was no basis to assert personal
3
jurisdiction over defendants in that independent action, particularly in the light of the Ninth Circuit’s
4
holding in Casualty Assurance Risk Ins. Brokerage Co. v. Dillon, 976 F.2d 596, 601 (9th Cir. 1992).
5
See RingCentral II, Order filed August 26, 2011. The Order provided, however, that the dismissal
6
was without prejudice to RingCentral’s reassertion of those claims in this action, while reserving to
7
defendants the right to challenge such joinder as improper on any grounds. Although defendants do
8
not contend there is anything improper with the joinder of the former RingCentral II claims in this
9
action per se, they now argue that the joinder does not create a basis for personal jurisdiction over
11
For the Northern District of California
United States District Court
10
those claims where it otherwise would not exist.
In opposing dismissal for lack of jurisdiction, RingCentral primarily relies on arguments that
12
were rejected in RingCentral II, and it has not shown there is a basis to revisit them now. If
13
jurisdiction existed for the reasons RingCentral advances, these claims could have gone forward in
14
RingCentral II.
15
Nevertheless, as defendants acknowledge, the Ninth Circuit recognizes the doctrine of
16
pendent personal jurisdiction. See Action Embroidery Corp. v. Atlantic Embroidery, Inc., 368 F.3d
17
1174, 1181 (9th Cir. 2004). Under that doctrine, “a court may assert . . . jurisdiction over a
18
defendant with respect to a claim for which there is no independent basis of personal jurisdiction so
19
long as it arises out of a common nucleus of operative facts with a claim in the same suit over which
20
the court does have personal jurisdiction.” Id. at 1180. Additionally, “[t]he facts underlying a
21
particular claim need not exactly track the facts underlying the claims for which there is personal
22
jurisdiction, so long as the core facts are the same.” Fiore v. Walden, 657 F.3d 838, 858 (9th Cir.
23
2011). Indeed, only a “loose factual connection between the claims” is necessary to support the
24
exercise of pendent personal jurisdiction. Id. at n. 22; see also CE Distribution, LLC v. New Sensor
25
Corp., 380 F.3d 1107, 1113-14 (9th Cir. 2004).
26
In resisting application of pendent personal jurisdiction here, defendants assert that there is
27
simply no relationship between the claims imported from RingCentral II (which arise from an
28
allegedly defamatory email they sent to a third party in Texas), and the claims originally brought in
2
1
this action. As to the trademark infringement and cybersquatting claims alleged in the original
2
complaint here, perhaps a tenable argument could be made that there is not even a “loose factual
3
connection” sufficient to support pendent jurisdiction over the claims arising from the Texas email.
4
The original complaint in this action, however, also alleged that defendants had made a variety of
5
false and misleading statements about RingCentral. As discussed below, the amended complaint
6
has added detail regarding that alleged “targeted campaign to disparage RingCentral’s products and
7
services.” While it may be true that the original allegations of disparagement focused on materials
8
posted on defendant’s website, the email to the third party in Texas can fairly be characterized as
9
part and parcel of the same alleged course of conduct.
As explained in Action Embroidery, the availability of pendent personal jurisdiction serves
11
For the Northern District of California
United States District Court
10
“judicial economy, avoidance of piecemeal litigation, and overall convenience of the parties.” 368
12
F.3d at 1181. “When a defendant must appear in a forum to defend against one claim, it is often
13
reasonable to compel that defendant to answer other claims in the same suit arising out of a common
14
nucleus of operative facts.” Id. Here, there would be no compelling reason to require or permit
15
these parties to litigate claims arising from the same overall course of alleged disparagement in two
16
separate forums, depending on whether the offending statements were made on a website or in an
17
email. Accordingly, the motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction is denied.
18
19
B. Claims arising from allegations of disparagement
20
The prior order of dismissal in this action concluded that all of the claims based on
21
allegations that defendants published false and misleading statements regarding RingCentral’s
22
products and services were inadequately pleaded. The order observed that the allegedly offending
23
statements were described only in the most general and conclusory terms and, as such, were no more
24
than the kind of “unadorned, the-defendant-unlawfully-harmed-me accusation” disapproved in
25
Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 129 S. Ct. 1937, 1949 (2009). The First Amended Complaint adequately
26
addresses the prior deficiency by describing the specific statements RingCentral contends were false
27
and disparaging.1 The degree of specificity that defendants contend is still lacking goes beyond
28
1
The relevant claims for relief are also further supported in the First Amended Complaint by the
inclusion of allegations regarding the Texas email.
3
1
what is required under Rule 8 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and Iqbal. See Iqbal, 129 S.
2
Ct. at 1949 (quoting Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 US 544, 555, 570 (2007) (“the pleading
3
standard Rule 8 announces does not require ‘detailed factual allegations” . . . . a complaint must
4
contain sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to ‘state a claim to relief that is plausible on its
5
face.’”). The motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim is therefore denied.
6
Defendants shall file an answer to the First Amended Complaint within 20 days of the date
7
of this order. The parties shall appear for a further Case Management Conference on March 1, 2012
8
at 10:00 a.m., with a joint Case Management Conference Statement to be filed one week in advance.
9
IT IS SO ORDERED.
11
For the Northern District of California
United States District Court
10
12
13
Dated: 2/1/12
RICHARD SEEBORG
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
4
Disclaimer: Justia Dockets & Filings provides public litigation records from the federal appellate and district courts. These filings and docket sheets should not be considered findings of fact or liability, nor do they necessarily reflect the view of Justia.
Why Is My Information Online?