JOHN E. STEELE, District Judge.
This matter comes before the Court on Defendants' Motion to Dismiss Plaintiff's Amended Complaint and Memorandum in Support Thereof (Doc. #31) filed on November 4, 2010. Plaintiff filed a Response and Motion to Amend Pre-Removal Complaint (Doc. #45) on December 13, 2011. Plaintiff has, however, already amended the pre-removal complaint (Doc. #2) and filed an Amended Complaint (Doc. #29-1) which is the subject of defendants' motion. Thus, the Court will deny plaintiff's motion to amend as moot and consider only plaintiff's response to defendants' motion to dismiss.
In the Amended Complaint, plaintiff, Ronald Gilmore, as personal representative of the estate of Vera Gilmore, alleges that: Vera Gilmore (Ms. Gilmore) was a resident at defendant's long term nursing home facility, operating under the name Life Care Center of Estero (LCCE). (Doc. #29-1, ¶2.) Plaintiff also names Life Care Centers of American, Inc., Life Care Centers of America, Inc. of Tennessee, and Lee County Medical Investors, LLC as defendants and alleges that they acted as a joint venture or enterprise with LCCE. (
In deciding a Rule 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss, the Court must accept all well-pleaded factual allegations in a complaint as true and take them in the light most favorable to plaintiff.
Plaintiff alleges two counts in the Amended Complaint: Negligence (Count One) and Negligence Per Se (Count Two).
Florida Statutes §§ 400.023-400.0238 provide the exclusive remedy for the personal injury or death of a nursing home resident arising out of negligence or a violation of rights specified in that chapter. Thus, to state a claim for negligence against Ms. Gilmore's nursing home, plaintiff must allege:
Fla. Stat. §400.023(2).
Defendants contend that this count should be dismissed because plaintiff fails to allege the element of duty. The Court agrees with defendants. Although, the statute itself provides that in any claim brought pursuant to § 400.023(3) "a licensee, person orentity shall have a duty to exercise reasonable care", plaintiff must identify which defendant or defendants owed Ms. Gilmore that duty.
Additionally, plaintiff must allege facts to support each of the elements listed above.
Defendants contend that Count Two should be dismissed because §400.023 prohibits such a claim. The Court agrees with defendants. Section 400.023(2) states:
Count Two will be dismissed with prejudice.
In plaintiff's response, he recognizes that the pre-removal complaint contained various deficiencies. Some of those deficiencies exist in the Amended Complaint and plaintiff should take this opportunity to correct them.
In making his jurisdictional allegations, for example, plaintiff is reminded that in addition to the amount-in-controversy requirement, he must allege the citizenship of the plaintiff and each of the defendants. A limited liability company is a citizen of every state in which one of its members is located. Rolling
With respect to the prayer for attorney's fees, the Court encourages plaintiff to review the most recent version of Section 400.023(1). The statute allows for attorney's fees only when the plaintiff prevails on a claim for injunctive or administrative relief.
To the extent plaintiff wishes to establish the existence of a joint venture among the defendants, he must allege: (1) a community of interest in the performance of a common purpose; (2) joint control or right of control; (3) a joint proprietary interest in the subject matter; (4) a right to share in the profits; and (5) a duty to share in any losses which may be sustained.
Finally, plaintiff must allege compliance with the pre-suit requirements outlined in §400.0233. The Court cautions plaintiff that a mere conclusory statement in this regard will be insufficient. Plaintiff must provide some factual detail demonstrating to the Court that he has exhausted all aspects of the pre-suit procedures contained in §§400.0233(2)-(11).
Accordingly, it is now
1. Defendants' Motion to Dismiss Plaintiff's Amended Complaint and Memorandum in Support Thereof (Doc. #31) is
2. Plaintiff may file a Second Amended Complaint