Hucul v. Navy Federal Credit Union

Filing 23

ORDER Granting 10 Defendant's Motion to Dismiss. The Court grants Defendant's motion to dismiss, and dismisses Plaintiff's Complaint without prejudice. Signed by Judge Dana M. Sabraw on 1/22/2018. (All non-registered users served via U.S. Mail Service)(aef) (sjt).

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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MICHAEL HUCUL,
v.

CASE NO. 17cv2238 DMS(MDD)
Plaintiff,

ORDER GRANTING
DEFENDANT’S MOTION TO
DISMISS

NAVY FEDERAL CREDIT UNION,
Defendant.

This case comes before the Court on Defendant’s motion to dismiss Plaintiff’s

16 Complaint. Plaintiff filed an opposition to the motion, and Defendant filed a reply. For
17 the reasons set out below, the Court grants the motion.
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I.

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BACKGROUND

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On November 2, 2017, Plaintiff Michael Hucul, proceeding pro se, filed the

21 present case against Defendant Navy Federal Credit Union. In the Complaint, Plaintiff
22 alleges that on September 29, 2017, he attempted to withdraw funds out of two of his
23 joint accounts with Defendant, the first account being held jointly with his wife and the
24 second account being held jointly with his son. (Compl. at 4.) Plaintiff alleges he was
25 denied access to the funds in those accounts, and when he called Defendant to inquire,
26 he was provided with a phone number for the California Department of Child Support
27 Services (“DCSS”). (Id.) In response to a further inquiry by Plaintiff, Defendant
28 emailed to him an “Order to Withhold” letter from DCSS. (Id., Compl., Ex. A.) It is
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1 unclear whether any funds have been released to DCSS or if the funds are still frozen
2 in Defendant’s accounts. Nevertheless, Plaintiff alleges Defendant’s conduct violates
3 the Right to Financial Privacy Act (“RFPA”). He specifically challenges Defendant’s
4 (1) failure to request a “certificate of compliance” from DCSS prior to freezing his
5 accounts and (2) failure to notify Plaintiff before freezing his accounts. (Id.) In
6 response to the Complaint, Defendant filed the present motion.1
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II.

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DISCUSSION

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Defendant raises three arguments in support of its motion. First, Defendant

10 argues it is immune from liability pursuant to California Family Code § 17453(f).
11 Second, Defendant asserts the RFPA does not apply to the facts of this case. Third,
12 Defendant contends that even if the RFPA applies, it did not violate the law.
13 A.

Legal Standard

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To survive a motion to dismiss under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6),

15 “a complaint must contain sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to ‘state a claim
16 to relief that is plausible on its face.’” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009)
17 (citing Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570 (2007)). “A claim has facial
18 plausibility when the plaintiff pleads factual content that allows the court to draw the
19 reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.” Id. (citing
20 Twombly, 550 U.S. at 556).
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“Determining whether a complaint states a plausible claim for relief will ... be a

22 context-specific task that requires the reviewing court to draw on its judicial experience
23 and common sense.” Id. at 679 (citing Iqbal v. Hasty, 490 F.3d 143, 157-58 (2d Cir.
24 2007)). In Iqbal, the Court began this task “by identifying the allegations in the
25 complaint that are not entitled to the assumption of truth.” Id. at 680. It then considered
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After filing the Complaint, Plaintiff filed an ex parte motion for a temporary
restraining order to prevent Defendant from transferring his funds to the DCSS. The
28 Court denied that motion, and Plaintiff filed an appeal of that decision, which is
currently pending.
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1 “the factual allegations in respondent’s complaint to determine if they plausibly suggest
2 an entitlement to relief.” Id. at 681.
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The RFPA Does Not Apply

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Defendant’s second argument in support of its motion to dismiss is that the RFPA

5 does not apply to the facts of this case. Because this argument is dispositive, the Court
6 addresses it first.
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The RFPA states, “No financial institution, or officer, employees, or agent of a

8 financial institution, may provide to any Government authority access to or copies of,
9 or the information contained in, the financial records of any customer except in
10 accordance with the provisions of this title.” 12 U.S.C. § 3403(a). The RFPA defines
11 “Government authority” as “any agency or department of the United States, or any
12 officer, employee, or agent thereof[.]” 12 U.S.C. § 3401(3). By its plain terms, the
13 RFPA does not apply to the facts of this case because there has been no conduct on
14 behalf of the United States Government. Rather, the only governmental action at issue
15 in this case is that of the DCSS, which is a department of the State of California, not the
16 United States. See Gyamfi v. Wells Fargo-Wachovia Bank, No. DKC 09-3001, 2010
17 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 131870 (D. Md. Dec. 14, 2010) (granting motion to dismiss RFPA
18 claim based on defendant’s freezing of account in response to request from Child
19 Support Services Division of Office of the Attorney General of the District of
20 Columbia). See also Goldman v. Consumers Credit Union, No. 1:16-cv-1372, 2017
21 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 60233, at *11 (W.D. Mich. Apr. 20, 2017) (dismissing RFPA claim
22 against credit union based on disclosure of information to county sheriff’s department).
23 Because the RFPA does not apply to the conduct at issue here, the Court grants
24 Defendant’s motion to dismiss.2
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In light of this holding, the Court declines to address Defendant’s other
28 arguments for dismissal. The Court also denies as moot Plaintiff’s unopposed motion
for joinder.
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III.

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CONCLUSION AND ORDER

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For these reasons, the Court grants Defendant’s motion to dismiss, and dismisses

4 Plaintiff’s Complaint without prejudice.
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IT IS SO ORDERED.

6 DATED: January 22, 2018
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HON. DANA M. SABRAW
United States District Judge

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