Case Information
*1 Case 2:08-cv-07119-DSF-CW Document 14 Filed 01/06/09 Page 1 of 2 Page ID #:124
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA CIVIL MINUTES - GENERAL Case No. CV 08-7119 DSF (CWx) Date 1/6/09 Title Alimon Williams v. Mortgage Lender Network USA, Inc., et al.
Present: The DALE S. FISCHER, United States District Judge Honorable
Debra Plato Not Present Deputy Clerk Court Reporter Attorneys Present for Plaintiffs: Attorneys Present for Defendants: Not Present Not Present (In Chambers) Order GRANTING Motion to Dismiss Plaintiff’s Proceedings:
Complaint
Before the Court is the motion by Defendants Wells Fargo Home Mortgage and Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc. to dismiss the complaint. The Court deems this matter appropriate for decision without oral argument. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 78; Local Rule 7-15. For the reasons given below, the motion is GRANTED.
Initially, the Court must establish its jurisdiction to hear this matter. The Court finds that it has subject matter jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1331 because Plaintiff appears to allege a violation of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Practices Act (“RICO”) in his second and third causes of action. The Court has supplemental jurisdiction to adjudicate his state law claims because they arise out of a common nucleus of operative fact.
Putting aside Plaintiff’s failure to allege numerous elements of a civil RICO violation, all of his claims are based on the erroneous premise that United States dollars lent out in a fractional reserve banking system are not legal currency. There is no authority that requires every economic transaction to take place using printed Federal Reserve Notes or minted coins. Adherence to a commodity based currency system, such as the gold or silver standard, is also not constitutionally or legally required. Article I, Section 10 of the United States Constitution prohibits state governments from “mak[ing] anything but gold and silver coin a tender in payment of debts,” but has no apparent relevance to Defendants as private parties.
CV-90 (12/02) CIVIL MINUTES - GENERAL Page 1 of 2 *2 Case 2:08-cv-07119-DSF-CW Document 14 Filed 01/06/09 Page 2 of 2 Page ID #:125
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA CIVIL MINUTES - GENERAL In his opposition, Plaintiff alludes to false disclosures and failures to disclose and implies that these may constitute violations of the Truth in Lending Act or the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act. (See Opp’n ¶¶ 12, 20-22.) However, these allegations are not pleaded in the complaint with any clarity that would allow the Defendants to respond. The motion to dismiss is GRANTED. Leave to amend is granted to the extent that Plaintiff’s allegations do not rely on the erroneous premise that a fractional reserve banking system is illegal or unconstitutional.
IT IS SO ORDERED. CV-90 (12/02) CIVIL MINUTES - GENERAL Page 2 of 2