Houston v. Gershman Investment Corp. et al

Filing 4

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER: IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that plaintiff's motion to proceed in formapauperis [ECF No. 2 ] is GRANTED. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that this action is DISMISSED without prejudice. An Order of Dismissal shall accompany this Memorandum and Order. Signed by District Judge E. Richard Webber on July 18, 2013. (BRP)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
EASTERN DIVISION
VIVIAN HOUSTON,
Plaintiff,
v.
GERSHMAN INVESTMENT CORP.,
et al.,
Defendants.

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No. 4:13CV01338 DDN

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
This matter is before the Court on plaintiff’s motion for leave to proceed in
forma pauperis pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915. Upon consideration of the financial
information provided with the motion, the Court finds that plaintiff is financially unable
to pay any portion of the filing fee. As a result, plaintiff will be granted leave to
proceed in forma pauperis. Additionally, the Court has reviewed the complaint and will
dismiss it for lack of jurisdiction.
Standard
Rule 12(h)(3) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure states: “If the court
determines at any time that it lacks subject-matter jurisdiction, the court must dismiss
the action.”

Discussion
Plaintiff alleges that her home was foreclosed upon in 2001 or 2002 and that she
litigated a wrongful foreclosure action in state court. Plaintiff claims that her claims
were denied and she lost her home. Plaintiff asserts that defendants committed fraud
in the state court action.
Federal district courts are courts of original jurisdiction; they lack subject matter
jurisdiction to engage in appellate review of state court decisions. Postma v. First Fed.
Sav. & Loan, 74 F.3d 160, 162 (8th Cir. 1996). “Review of state court decisions may
be had only in the Supreme Court.” Id. As a result, the Court lacks jurisdiction over
claims in the complaint.
Moreover, the Court cannot envision any amendment to the complaint that might
give rise to federal court jurisdiction. As a result, the Court will dismiss this action
without further proceedings.
Accordingly,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that plaintiff’s motion to proceed in forma
pauperis [ECF No. 2] is GRANTED.

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IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that this action is DISMISSED without
prejudice.
An Order of Dismissal shall accompany this Memorandum and Order.
So Ordered this 18th day of July, 2013.

E. RICHARD WEBBER
SENIOR UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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