FERNANDO J. GAITAN, Jr., District Judge.
Pending before the Court are (1) Defendant's Motion to Dismiss with Supporting Suggestions (Doc. No. 9); and (2) Plaintiff's Motion for Leave to File Amended Complaint (Doc. No. 16). As an initial matter, plaintiff's motion for leave to file amended complaint (Doc. No. 16) will be
On August 1, 2014, plaintiff filed the current suit in the Circuit Court of Jackson County, Missouri. Defendant removed the action to federal court on September 16, 2014. Plaintiff asserts in his pro se complaint that defendant obtained a consumer credit report for plaintiff without permission or consent from plaintiff and without any permissible purpose under the Fair Credit Reporting Act ("FCRA"), 15 U.S.C. § 1681
When ruling on a defendant's motion to dismiss, a judge must accept as true all of the factual allegations in the complaint.
Defendant moves to dismiss because (1) plaintiff has insufficiently pled that defendant had no permissible purpose to obtain plaintiff's consumer credit report under the FCRA; (2) plaintiff's claim for damages under the FCRA fails because plaintiff has not sufficiently pled willfulness of defendant's actions; and (3) plaintiff's state law claims are preempted by the FCRA.
Plaintiff claims that defendant willfully violated the FCRA by obtaining his credit report without a statutorily permissible purpose. To succeed on such a claim, Plaintiff must establish that (1) there existed a consumer report, (2) defendant obtained or used said report, and (3) it did so without a statutorily permissible purpose.
Defendant argues that plaintiff has made only threadbare allegations that defendant had no permissible purpose in obtaining plaintiff's credit report. Upon consideration, the Court finds that the complaint alleges sufficient facts that defendant accessed plaintiff's credit report with no permissible purpose. Plaintiff alleges that he obtained his credit reports, and noticed inquiries by defendant on July 21, 2013 and on October 11, 2013. Doc. No. 9-1, ¶ 5. Plaintiff alleges that he has never had any business dealings with defendant, nor has he applied for credit or services with defendant, nor has he executed any contracts with defendant. Doc. No. 9-1, ¶ 13. Plaintiff further alleges that the credit inquiries dated July 21, 2013 and October 11, 2013, had no "permissible purpose" and appear to violate 15 U.S.C. § 1681b. Doc. No. 9-1, ¶ 14. Plaintiff further indicates that he gave defendant notice of its violations, but as of the date of filing the complaint had not received a reply from defendant. Doc. No. 9-1, ¶ 16. The Court finds these facts sufficient to state a claim that defendant had no permissible purpose in obtaining the credit report.
Defendant also argues that the FCRA claim fails because plaintiff has not sufficiently pled the willfulness of defendant's actions. Plaintiff seeks statutory damages in the amount of $5,000, plus actual damages, costs, attorney's fees, and other relief. Doc. No. 9-1, p. 6. Defendant notes that statutory damages are unavailable without a showing of willfulness.
Plaintiff has asserted that defendant's actions constitute a violation of plaintiff's right to privacy, as well as a violation of RSMo § 407.020 (the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act, or "MMPA"). Defendant correctly notes that 15 U.S.C. § 1681h(e) preempts all claims in the nature of "invasion of privacy" related to information disclosed to credit bureaus. Thus, any privacy related claim must be dismissed. Furthermore, defendant asserts that any remaining state court claims should be dismissed because 15 U.S.C. § 1681t(b)(1)(F) provides that "No requirement or prohibition may be imposed under the laws of any State with respect to any subject matter regulated under Section 1681s-2. . . ." However, 15 U.S.C. § 1681s-2 appears to regulate improper furnishing of information to consumer reporting agencies. This case is not about improper information being furnished to credit bureaus; instead, it is about an allegedly improper request of a credit report. Therefore, defendant cannot rely on 15 U.S.C. § 1681t(b)(1)(F) for preemption of plaintiff's MMPA claim. Therefore, defendant's motion to dismiss state law claims is
Therefore, for the foregoing reasons, (1) Defendant's motion to dismiss (Doc. No. 9) is