MITCHELL v. EASTERN SAVINGS BANK, FSB

Filing 20

MEMORANDUM OPINION to 19 Order. Signed by Judge James E. Boasberg on 9/13/12. (lcjeb4)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

EARL MITCHELL,
Plaintiff,
v.

Civil Action No. 12-657 (JEB)

EASTERN SAVINGS BANK, FSB,
Defendant.

MEMORANDUM OPINION
Following the foreclosure of a rental property located in Southeast Washington, a dispute
arose between Plaintiff Earl Mitchell, a tenant in the building, and Defendant Eastern Savings
Bank, which acquired the property in the foreclosure. Plaintiff claims that Defendant engaged in
an unlawful self-help eviction on February 9, 2009, by removing his personal belongings,
changing the locks, and barring his re-entry to the property. In filing suit on February 7, 2012, in
the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, Plaintiff alleged four causes of action connected
to this incident: wrongful eviction (Count I), retaliatory eviction (Count II), breach of the
implied covenant of quiet enjoyment (Count III), and “punitive damages” (Count IV). Shortly
thereafter, Defendant removed the case to this Court and now moves to dismiss the suit under
Rule 12(b)(6) for failure to state a claim or, in the alternative, for summary judgment. Because
the Court finds that Plaintiff cannot state a cause of action for retaliatory eviction or “punitive
damages,” it will grant Defendant’s Motion as to those Counts (II & IV). Plaintiff’s remaining
claims, however, alleging wrongful eviction and the breach of the implied covenant of quiet
enjoyment (Counts I & III) may proceed.

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I.

Background
There are a number of background facts that appear to be largely undisputed. To begin

with, Mitchell entered into a written rental agreement with Vasiliki Pappas on January 22, 1999.
See Am. Compl., ¶ 6. This agreement consisted of a handwritten document, signed and dated by
both parties, stating that “Earl Mitchell agrees to rent from Vasiliki Pappas the upstairs unit plus
one bedroom at 2507 33rd St. S.E. Washington, DC 20020 for one year starting February 1, 1999,
after that month for to month, the rent is $200.00 per month.” Mot., Exh. 8 (Mitchell Lease).
Mitchell moved into the property shortly after executing the agreement. See Am. Compl., ¶ 7.
In the summer of 2001, while Mitchell continued to live on the property, his landlord
defaulted on the mortgage and Defendant Eastern Savings Bank foreclosed on the property. See
id., ¶ 9. Following the foreclosure, ESB initiated proceedings in the Landlord-Tenant branch of
D.C. Superior Court against Pappas and two of the property’s tenants, Wudenha Kebede and
Matt Banks, but did not initiate similar proceedings against Mitchell. See id., ¶¶ 10, 12.
Mitchell attempted to intervene in the Banks case in September 2008, but his motion was denied.
See id., ¶¶ 16-17. He also sent letters to Defendant’s counsel in late September 2008, and again
in early February 2009, in which he continued to assert his rights as a tenant of the property. See
id., ¶¶ 19-20. On February 9, 2009, Defendant evicted Mitchell “by removing his personal
belongings from the Property and changing the locks on the doors to permanently bar Plaintiff’s
entry.” Id., ¶ 21. Mitchell claims that as a result of the eviction, he lost “irreplaceable family
heirlooms such as the only known pictures of grandparents and other relatives, . . . certain power
tools used in his trade which affected his income, and [was] left immediately homeless and
forced to find alternative housing which was ultimately more expensive and burdensome . . . .”
Id., ¶ 24.

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Mitchell claims that he was never served with a notice to vacate the property or to correct
any violation of his tenancy. See id., ¶ 14. Defendant disputes this, claiming that Mitchell did in
fact receive notice in the form of a December 24, 2008, writ of restitution in the Banks litigation:
[T]he December 24 writ was an instrument legally issued by the
Superior Court; was predicated on a judgment for possession; was
directed to ‘Matt Banks and Occupants’; set forth a date whereby
Eastern would take lawful possession of the 33rd Street property;
and was executed by the U.S. Marshalls [sic] in accordance with
Superior Court Landlord-Tenant Rule 16(a).
Reply at 7.
ESB also disputes Mitchell’s claimed status as a tenant of the property. Specifically, it
contends that at the time of the foreclosure, Mitchell became an at-will tenant. See Mot. at 9.
Mitchell then switched rooms with Banks, moving from the upstairs bedroom he had lived in
under the lease to a room in the basement of the property. See id. at 8-9. This “trade” of rooms,
Defendant alleges, constituted an unlawful assignment, which divested both tenants of their atwill tenancies. See id. at 10. Mitchell, Defendant argues, thereby became a squatter with no
right to any form of notice regarding the eviction. See id. at 11.
II.

Legal Standard
Defendant’s Motion seeks dismissal under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6) for

failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. Alternatively, Defendant argues that
should the Court consider documents outside of the Complaint, the Motion should be converted
into one for summary judgment. See Mot. at 5. The Court, accordingly, will set forth both
standards of review.
A.

Motion to Dismiss

In evaluating Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss, the Court must “treat the complaint’s
factual allegations as true . . . and must grant plaintiff ‘the benefit of all inferences that can be
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derived from the facts alleged.’” Sparrow v. United Air Lines, Inc., 216 F.3d 1111, 1113 (D.C.
Cir. 2000) (quoting Schuler v. United States, 617 F.2d 605, 608 (D.C. Cir. 1979)) (internal
citation omitted); see also Jerome Stevens Pharms., Inc. v. FDA, 402 F.3d 1249, 1253 (D.C. Cir.
2005). The Court need not accept as true, however, “a legal conclusion couched as a factual
allegation,” nor an inference unsupported by the facts set forth in the Complaint. Trudeau v.
Fed. Trade Comm’n, 456 F.3d 178, 193 (D.C. Cir. 2006) (quoting Papasan v. Allain, 478 U.S.
265, 286 (1986)) (internal quotation marks omitted).
Rule 12(b)(6) provides for the dismissal of an action where a complaint fails “to state a
claim upon which relief can be granted.” When the sufficiency of a complaint is challenged
under Rule 12(b)(6), the factual allegations presented in it must be presumed true and should be
liberally construed in plaintiff’s favor. Leatherman v. Tarrant Cnty. Narcotics Intelligence and
Coordination Unit, 507 U.S. 163, 164 (1993). The notice pleading rules are “not meant to
impose a great burden on a plaintiff,” Dura Pharm., Inc. v. Broudo, 544 U.S. 336, 347 (2005),
and he must therefore be given every favorable inference that may be drawn from the allegations
of fact. Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 584 (2007). Although “detailed factual
allegations” are not necessary to withstand a Rule 12(b)(6) motion, id. at 555, “a complaint must
contain sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to state a claim to relief that is plausible on its
face.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009) (internal quotation omitted). Plaintiff must
put forth “factual content that allows the court to draw the reasonable inference that the
defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.” Id. Though a plaintiff may survive a 12(b)(6)
motion even if “recovery is very remote and unlikely,” Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555 (citing
Scheuer v. Rhodes, 416 U.S. 232, 236 (1974)), the facts alleged in the complaint “must be
enough to raise a right to relief above the speculative level.” Id. at 556.

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“District courts may refer to materials outside the pleadings in resolving a 12(b)(6)
motion. But when they do, they must also convert the motion to dismiss into one for summary
judgment.” Kim v. United States, 632 F.3d 713, 719 (D.C. Cir. 2011). Where the Court so
converts, however, the parties must be provided with the opportunity to present evidence in
support of their positions. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(d), 56; Kim, 632 F.3d at 719.
B.

Summary Judgment

Summary judgment may be granted if “the movant shows that there is no genuine dispute
as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Fed R. Civ. P.
56(a); see also Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 247-48 (1986); Holcomb v.
Powell, 433 F.3d 889, 895 (D.C. Cir. 2006). “A party asserting that a fact cannot be or is
genuinely disputed must support the assertion by citing to particular parts of materials in the
record.” Fed R. Civ. P. 56(c)(1)(A). “A fact is ‘material’ if a dispute over it might affect the
outcome of a suit under governing law; factual disputes that are ‘irrelevant or unnecessary’ do
not affect the summary judgment determination.” Holcomb, 433 F.3d at 895 (quoting Liberty
Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. at 248). “An issue is ‘genuine’ if the evidence is such that a reasonable
jury could return a verdict for the nonmoving party.” Id. The party seeking summary judgment
“bears the heavy burden of establishing that the merits of his case are so clear that expedited
action is justified.” Taxpayers Watchdog, Inc., v. Stanley, 819 F.2d 294, 297 (D.C. Cir. 1987).
“Until the movant has met its burden, the opponent of a summary judgment motion is under no
obligation to present any evidence.” Gray v. Greyhound Lines, East, 545 F.2d 169, 174 (D.C.
Cir. 1976). When a motion for summary judgment is under consideration, “the evidence of the
non-movant is to be believed, and all justifiable inferences are to be drawn in his favor.” Liberty
Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. at 255; see also Mastro v. Potomac Elec. Power Co., 447 F.3d 843, 850

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(D.C. Cir. 2006); Aka v. Washington Hosp. Ctr., 156 F.3d 1284, 1288 (D.C. Cir. 1998) (en
banc); Washington Post Co. v. U.S. Dep’t of Health and Human Servs., 865 F.2d 320, 325 (D.C.
Cir. 1989). On a motion for summary judgment, the Court must “eschew making credibility
determinations or weighing the evidence.” Czekalski v. Peters, 475 F.3d 360, 363 (D.C. Cir.
2007).
III.

Analysis
Defendant challenges each of the four separate causes of action asserted by Plaintiff, all

of which stem from the events surrounding his eviction from the rental property in Southeast
Washington. The Court will address each in turn.
A. Count I: Wrongful Eviction
In seeking summary judgment on the first count, Defendant argues that Mitchell lacks the
requisite landlord-tenant relationship required to support a claim for wrongful eviction. See Mot.
at 7-11. Specifically, ESB contends that, with the foreclosure of the property, Mitchell became
an at-will tenant and was prohibited from assigning or subletting his room without forfeiting his
rights as a tenant. See id. at 9. Such forfeiture was triggered here, Defendant argues, when
Mitchell unlawfully assigned his living quarters to Banks without ESB’s consent. See id. at 10.
Divested of his tenancy-at will, Mitchell thus became a squatter with no right to receive the
notice he is demanding. See id. at 11. Plaintiff conversely denies that any assignment occurred
and argues that even if it had, Defendant was nonetheless prohibited from engaging in a self-help
eviction. See Opp. at 3-8.
In support of its assertion that an unlawful assignment occurred, Defendant points to
testimony and “findings by the Superior Court and the [D.C. Office of Administrative
Hearings].” See Mot. at 8-9. Mitchell counters with deposition testimony from prior Superior

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Court proceedings in the Banks litigation to demonstrate that no assignment ever occurred. See
Opp. at 7 (citing Transcript of Deposition of Earl Mitchell, attached as Exh. C). Defendant
responds that the testimony Mitchell cites does not create any factual dispute regarding his
alleged tenancy, thus allowing the Court to resolve the issue on summary judgment without
ordering discovery. See Reply at 4; Mot. at 7 n.1. The Court disagrees. Because the parties
point to arguably disputed facts elicited in other related proceedings, the Court finds that it would
be premature to make a determination as to the status of Mitchell’s tenancy based on this record,
particularly since this would deny Plaintiff any opportunity in discovery to develop his
evidentiary support in this case. See, e.g., Gordon v. Napolitano, 786 F. Supp. 2d 82, 86 (D.D.C.
2011) (finding it “premature” to dismiss or convert to motion for summary judgment where
“Plaintiff has not had the benefit of any discovery to bolster her claims.”); McWay v. LaHood,
269 F.R.D. 35, 37-38 (D.D.C. 2010) (noting that pre-discovery summary-judgment motions
should be viewed “with special caution”); Young v. District of Columbia, 752 A.2d 138, 145
(D.C. 2000) (reversing summary judgment on wrongful-eviction claim where factual dispute
concerning whether landlord-tenant relationship existed).
Furthermore, even if there were no factual disputes regarding the status of Mitchell’s
tenancy, the D.C. Court of Appeals has left open the possibility that a cause of action for
wrongful eviction may nonetheless be available to an individual who has “something less than
some sort of tenancy.” See Sarete, Inc. v. 1344 U St. Ltd. P’ship, 871 A.2d 480, 494-495 (D.C.
2005) (“In Wilson v. Hart, 829 A.2d 511 (D.C. 2003), a wrongful eviction action pertaining to a
residential apartment, we left open the question as to ‘whether a wrongful eviction or breach of
quiet enjoyment action may lie even if appellants’ occupancy constituted something less than
some sort of tenancy.’”). As a result, even if Defendant could establish that there was an

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unlawful assignment that terminated Mitchell’s at-will tenancy, he may still have a cause of
action for wrongful eviction. This is a matter for the parties to address in a subsequent summaryjudgment motion after discovery. Count I will thus not be dismissed.
B. Count II: Retaliatory Eviction
Defendant next argues that Count II fails as a matter of law because the District of
Columbia does not recognize such a cause of action. See Mot. at 12 (citing to Twyman v.
Johnson, 655 A.2d 850 (D.C. 1995), as unequivocally refusing to recognize retaliatory eviction
as cause of action). Mitchell fails to respond to this argument at all. See Opp. at 3-11. The
Court may thus treat such failure as a concession. See, e.g., Hopkins v. Women’s Div., Gen. Bd.
of Global Ministries, 238 F. Supp. 2d 174, 178 (D.D.C. 2002) (“It is well understood in this
Circuit that when a plaintiff files an opposition to a motion . . . addressing only certain
arguments raised by the defendant, a court may treat those arguments that the plaintiff failed to
address as conceded.”); see also Day v. D.C. Dep’t of Consumer & Regulatory Affairs, 191 F.
Supp. 2d 154, 159 (D.D.C. 2002) (“If a party fails to counter an argument that the opposing party
makes in a motion, the court may treat that argument as conceded.”) (citation omitted).
Mitchell’s concession is unsurprising given Twyman’s manifest repudiation of retaliatory
eviction as an independent cause of action. See 655 A.2d at 857-58. The Court thus dismisses
Count II.
C. Count III: Breach of the Implied Covenant of Quiet Enjoyment
Defendant then argues that Mitchell’s “failure to put forward any facts, whatsoever, in
support of [Count III], is fatal”; even if sufficiently pled, the claim would be “substantively
meritless,” as there were never any promises by ESB to Mitchell and thus “no cause of action for
a ‘broken promise.’” See Mot. at 12-13. Mitchell first addresses the pleading point, noting that

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by adopting and incorporating by reference the averments from the previous paragraphs in the
Amended Complaint, he has included “numerous factual allegations supporting the claim.” See
Opp. at 8. And in response to the attack on the merits, Mitchell argues that there need not be a
separate promise, as Defendant suggests, because a cause of action for breach of the implied
warranty of quiet enjoyment lies where a landlord disturbs a tenant’s possession of the property
through eviction. See id. at 9. In its Reply, Defendant clarifies that the fatal flaw in Mitchell’s
claim is the lack of a legitimate tenancy. See Reply at 8-9.
“[A] lease carries an implied covenant of quiet enjoyment in the property between a
lessor and a lessee. The implied covenant of quiet enjoyment is a promise that during the terms
of the tenancy, the tenant must not be disturbed by the lessor or anyone claiming under him or
her or by anyone claiming paramount title.” 49 Am. Jur. 2d, Landlord and Tenant § 477 (2012).
“The covenant is not broken unless there is an eviction from, or some actual disturbance in, the
possession by the landlord or by some third person under paramount title.” Hyde v. Brandler,
118 A.2d 398, 400 (D.C. 1955). As previously discussed in Part III.A, supra, there is a material
factual dispute surrounding whether Mitchell has a legitimate tenancy. Just as it held in regard to
the wrongful-eviction claim, the Court finds it premature to dismiss this claim for breach of the
implied covenant before Mitchell has been afforded an opportunity in discovery to develop his
evidentiary support. Additionally, even if Defendant can establish that there was no tenancy, the
D.C. Court of Appeals has noted – as it did with the wrongful-eviction tort – that a “breach of
quiet enjoyment action may lie even if appellants’ occupancy constituted something less than
some sort of tenancy.” See Wilson, 829 A.2d at 515. The Court will therefore deny Defendant’s
Motion as to Count III.

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D. Count IV: Punitive Damages
Defendant argues that Count IV is meritless as a matter of law and must be dismissed
since “‘punitive damages is not an independent cause of action.’” See Mot. at 13 (citing Botvin
v. Islamic Republic of Iran, 604 F. Supp. 2d 22, 25 (D.D.C. 2009)). Mitchell does not offer any
authority to the contrary, instead arguing that whether asserted as a separate cause of action or as
a claim for damages, he is entitled to consideration of such damages in this case. See Opp. at 910. While Defendant is correct that punitive damages are not a separate cause of action, they are
available as relief in actions for intentional torts such as wrongful eviction. See Mendes v.
Johnson, 389 A.2d 781, 792 (D.C. 1978) (en banc); Robinson v. Sarisky, 535 A.2d 901, 906 907 (D.C. 1988). The Court will thus dismiss Count IV as an independent count, but will allow
Mitchell to seek such damages. See Am. Compl. at 7 (Prayer for Relief seeking punitive
damages).
IV. Conclusion
For the foregoing reasons, the Court will issue a contemporaneous Order that will grant
Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss Counts II and IV and otherwise deny the Motion as to the
remaining claims, Counts I & III.

/s/ James E. Boasberg
JAMES E. BOASBERG
United States District Judge
Date: September 13, 2012

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