Patrice Hollis v. Discover

Summary

The United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina granted Discover’s motion to dismiss a pro se plaintiff’s claims concerning alleged refusal to accept remittances, breach of contract, and sale of her account and private information. The court held that the remittance theory was inadequately pleaded and that the breach-of-contract allegations were conclusory, and it declined to consider new claims raised for the first time in opposition to the motion.

Holdings

1. The purported remittance claim was dismissed because the complaint failed to identify what the remittance was or explain how Discover's refusal to accept it violated state or federal law, making the theory an impermissible shotgun pleading.
2. The breach-of-contract claim was dismissed because, even assuming a valid credit card agreement existed, the complaint alleged no facts showing that Discover's sale or transfer of the account and information breached the agreement, which expressly authorized such a transfer.
3. The court would not consider claims asserted for the first time in the response to the motion to dismiss and denied any request to amend the complaint through the briefing.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the complaint stated a legally sufficient claim based on Discover's alleged refusal to accept a purported remittance.
2. Whether the complaint plausibly alleged that Discover breached a contract by selling or transferring the plaintiff's account and related information.
3. Whether claims raised for the first time in the plaintiff's response to the motion to dismiss could be considered or treated as an amendment to the complaint.

Disposition

dismissed