Knuckles v. Department of the Army

Filing 18

ORDER granting 14 Amended Motion to Dismiss. The Clerk is instructed to terminate all motions and deadlines, enter the appropriate judgment of dismissal, and close this case. Signed by Judge J. Randal Hall on 03/07/2017. (thb)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
AUGUSTA DIVISION

JENIQUA IRENE KNUCKLES,

*

Plaintiff,

*

v.

*

*

DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY,

CV

116-013

*

Defendant.

*

*

ORDER

This

suit

employment

arises

as

a

out

civilian

of

the

employee

termination

at

Fort

of

Plaintiff's

Gordon.

Plaintiff

alleges that she was denied her right to arbitrate the propriety
of her
But

removal.

because

She now asks

Plaintiff

has

jurisdiction in this Court,
that

she

is

entitled

Accordingly,

the

dismiss

to

failed

to

to compel
plead

arbitration.

a

basis

for

and because she has failed to plead

compel

GRANTS

arbitration,

I.

Defendant's

her

claim

amended

fails.

14).

(doc.

Court

the Court

motion

Background

Plaintiff previously served as a civilian employee at

Gordon.

to

While employed at Fort Gordon,

Plaintiff was

Fort

a member

of

American

("AFGE"),

Federation

a union.

Defendant

were

(See Doc.

of

Government

(Doc. 1 at 5. )

parties

14-2.)

to

This

a

for

employees

grievances

with

collective-bargaining

Defendant.

allowed

under

agreement

of

the

other

if

resolution

"invoked only by the

Plaintiff

claims

was

(Doc.

1

was

once

at

5.)

and

eventually

And

dissatisfied

removed

certain

to

for

delay, AFGE reorganized.

480

days."

(Id.)

the

service,

take

her
from

was

arbitration
costs

on

[Plaintiff's]

filed

Court

cover

be

which

she

dispute

to

Defendant.

Defendant "improperly

(Id.)

And during

this

New officers now control AFGE,
(Id.

at 6.)

"the new board members will

invoke

behalf

but

will

not

cover

the

(Id.)

Plaintiff

the

. . . ."

could

continually

and Plaintiff is no longer a member of the union.

According to the complaint,

outcome

(Id. at 52.)

however,

according to Plaintiff,

the

arbitration

with

documents

arbitration,

documents

Notably,

arbitration

from

agreed

workplace

request

or [AFGE]."

AFGE

received

to

But

AFGE and

agreement.

resolve

47-53.)

AFGE

2017

among other things,

to

at

procedures.

The

postponed because,
withheld the

(Id.

[Defendant]

it

AFGE

they were

improper.

arbitration

and

Defendant

Local

During that time,

agreement provided,

procedures

agreement

Employees,

the

to
cost

this

compel
of

the

lawsuit

arbitration
arbitration.

in

February

and

to

2016.

require

She

asks

Defendant

Defendant moves

to

to

dismiss

Plaintiff's

complaint

subject-matter

because

Plaintiff

jurisdiction and because

has

failed

to
no

Plaintiff has

plead
right

under the collective-bargaining agreement to compel arbitration.
II.

Legal Standards

In considering a motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6),
Court

tests

Rhodes,

all

the

416 U.S.

facts

232,

alleged

inferences

in

Hoffman-Pugh
The

legal

Court,

the

v.

sufficiency of the

236

the

in

(1974).

complaint

light

Ramsey,

however,

most

312

only well-pleaded facts.
79

Scheuer v.

The Court must accept as

and construe

favorable

F.3d

need not

complaint.

1222,

accept

to

1225

legal

Ashcroft v.

the

all

true

reasonable

plaintiff.

(11th

the

Cir.

conclusions

See

2002).

as

Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662,

true,

678-

(2009).

A complaint

also must

accepted as true,
on its face.'"

550 U.S. 544,
"factual

570

inference

that

alleged."

Id.

factual matter,

'to state a claim to relief that is plausible
Id. at 678

content

"contain sufficient

(citing Bell Atl.

(2007)).
that

the

Corp.

v. Twombly,

The plaintiff is required to plead

allows

the

defendant

court

is

to

liable

draw
for

the
the

reasonable
misconduct

"The plausibility standard is not akin to a

'probability requirement,'

but it asks

for more than a sheer

possibility that a defendant has acted unlawfully."

Id.

A motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction under Federal
Rule

of

Civil

Procedure

12(b)(1)

is

"decided without

reference

to

the

merits

exclusive

of

province

Corp.,

323

F.3d

motion

may

be

McElmurry

1244,
to

920,

of

a

the

other

[the]

matter

hand,

jurisdiction
Id.

in

of

2007).

if

(1)

she has

to

state

court."

attack"

or

A

v.

the

Amway

Rule

12(b)(1)

"factual

a

attack."

Augusta-Richmond

Cty.,

501

F.3d

jurisdiction"

sufficiently alleged a

in

her

"the

existence

irrespective

of

complaint.
A

factual

of

the

Id.

attack,

subject

matter

pleadings . . . ."

(internal quotation marks omitted).

moves

to

Discussion

dismiss

Plaintiff's

failed to plead jurisdiction and
a

within

Morrison

(citation omitted).

fact,

lie

2003).

plaintiff has

Ill.

Defendant

and

A facial attack requires the Court

challenges

(citation omitted)

claim

(11th Cir.

"facial

(alteration in original)
on

trial

Gov't

(11th Cir.

subject

the

924-25

Consol.

"look and see

underlying

of

either

v.

1251

basis

the

claim.

The

Court

complaint

(2)

addresses

because

she has

these

failed

arguments

separately below.
A. Plaintiff has failed to plead jurisdiction.

Defendant

jurisdiction

argues

in

this

Defendant

has

waived

sovereign

immunity

agencies from suit."

that

Plaintiff

Court

has

failed

because

she

has

sovereign

shields

the

immunity.

Federal

FDIC v. Meyer,

Thus, as a federal agency,

to

not

shown

"Absent

a

Government

510 U.S.

471,

establish

that

waiver,

and

its

475 (1994).

Defendant is immune from suit unless

it

has

waived

sovereign

jurisdictional,

id.,

immunity.

Sovereign

Here,

9

§ 1

not

et

FAA,

1249,

a

(11th Cir.

seq. ,

provide

subject-matter
F.3d

872

see Thompson v.

McHugh,

2010).

Plaintiff relies only on the Federal Arbitration Act,

U.S.C.

"does

is

and it is a plaintiff's burden to show that

the government has waived its immunity,
388 F. App'x 870,

immunity

to

an

support

independent

jurisdiction."

1253

(11th

plaintiff

Cir.

must

See

F.3d

1254-57

Cir.

on

establish

the

(11th

FAA

is

jurisdiction

2011).

v.

court's

Grp.,

320

under

the

based

v.

Accordingly,

that

FAA

JFS

Bank

and

the

proceed

to

State

But
federal

jurisdiction

Cmty.

thus

a

Bank

Thus,

misplaced,

and

for

Household

establish

controversy.

reliance

basis

2003).

underlying
1241,

jurisdiction.

she

on

the

Strong,

651

Plaintiff's

has

Defendant

failed

has

to

waived

immunity to this suit.
B. P l a i n t i f f has

failed to

Alternatively,
to

state

a

arbitration

Defendant

claim for

under

state a

claim for

argues

relief because

the

that
she

relief.

Plaintiff

has

no

collective-bargaining

has

failed

to

compel

right

agreement.1

As

1 Addressing this argument requires the Court to consider a document
outside the complaint because Plaintiff did not attach the collectivebargaining agreement to her complaint.
A court may consider materials
outside of a complaint without converting a motion to dismiss into a motion
for summary judgment when the document is "(1) central to the plaintiff's
claim and (2) undisputed."
Day v. Taylor, 400 F.3d 1272, 1276 (11th Cir.
2005).

In

this

sense,

"undisputed"

means

challenge the authenticity of the document.

that

Id.

the

Here,

plaintiff

dispute the authenticity of the collective-bargaining agreement,
central to her claim.

Indeed,

does

not

Plaintiff does not

and it is

she bases her alleged right to arbitration on

mentioned,

the

collective-bargaining agreement between AFGE and

Defendant established procedures for the resolution of employee
grievances,

including

Arbitration,

however,

[AFGE]."

arbitration.

could be

(See

Doc.

14-2

"invoked only by

at

47-53.)

[Defendant]

or

(Id^ at 52.)

Because

only

arbitration

Defendant

in

for

her

complaint,

the

Agency

to

she

she

has

specifically

invoke

no

states

Arbitration

has

initiate

In

that

Plaintiff

to

plausibly allege that she is entitled to compel arbitration.
concedes

agreement,

right

to

Plaintiff

the

had the

failed

fact,

under

and AFGE

right

to

that

she

and

arbitration:

cover

"would like

the

cost

of

arbitration per the agreement that only the agency or the union
can

invoke

arbitration."

(Doc.

1

at

6.)

That

is,

Plaintiff

wants the Court to require Defendant to invoke arbitration under

the agreement because she recognizes that she does not have the

right to request arbitration.
Plaintiff

is

entitled

International

(2d Cir.

to

Association

1962)

But the Court is unpersuaded that

such

of

(concluding

relief.

See

Machinists,

that

an

Black-Clawson

313

F.2d

aggrieved

Co.

179,

employee

v.

183-84

had

no

right to compel arbitration because "the collective bargaining
agreement . . . [gave]

the

employee ... no

right

to

compel . . . arbitration . . . .").

the agreement.

Thus,

the Court

is

satisfied that

it may consider this

document without converting Defendant's motion to dismiss into a motion for
summary judgment.

In
matter

sum,

because

jurisdiction,

Plaintiff
and

has

because

she

has a right to compel arbitration,
GRANTS

The

Court

14) .

motions
this

has

to

not

plead

subject-

pleaded that

she

her claim fails and the Court

Defendant's motion to dismiss.

IV.

(doc.

failed

GRANTS

Thus,

Defendant's

the

and deadlines,

Conclusion

Clerk

is

amended

motion

instructed

to

to

dismiss

TERMINATE

ENTER THE APPROPRIATE JUDGMENT,

all

and CLOSE

case,

ORDER ENTERED at Augusta,

*7V^

Georgia this

/

day of March,

2017

HONORABLE

J.

RANDAL

HALL

UNITEj/ STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
ffiRN

DISTRICT

OF GEORGIA