Also known as: motions to dismiss · MTD
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A procedural request by which a party asks the court to terminate an action or a claim without a trial on the merits. The request commonly rests on a defect in the pleadings, lack of jurisdiction, or failure of the allegations to state a claim on which relief can be granted.
Maurice Marshall sued Maxwell Manufacturing alleging that the company conspired with competitors to fix prices. The complaint stated only that the defendants acted in parallel and that an agreement must have existed. Maxwell moved to dismiss. The court disregarded the bare assertion of conspiracy and found that the remaining facts did not plausibly show an agreement, so the motion succeeded.
Maya Malik was indicted by a grand jury. She filed a motion to dismiss the indictment, claiming one juror lacked legal qualification because of a prior felony conviction. The record showed that twelve qualified jurors still concurred in the indictment. The court denied the motion.
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Madison Meyers sued several telecommunications firms alleging they conspired to restrain trade by charging similar rates. The complaint described only identical pricing behavior without facts suggesting prior agreement. The defendants moved to dismiss. The court held that the allegations described independent action rather than conspiracy and granted the motion.
Miles Montgomery was served with process while briefly visiting California on business. He moved to dismiss the suit for lack of personal jurisdiction. The court found that his physical presence in the state at the time of service supplied the necessary contacts and denied the motion.
Megan Moore lived with her grandson and two great-grandchildren in a single-family zone. The city cited her for violating the occupancy ordinance and she moved to dismiss the enforcement action. The court examined whether the ordinance's narrow definition of family infringed protected liberty interests and granted the motion.
Musa Mensah was charged under a state sodomy statute for private consensual conduct. He moved to dismiss the prosecution on constitutional grounds. The district court granted the motion after determining that the statute violated protected liberty interests.
The complaint must contain well-pleaded factual allegations that, taken as true, plausibly show entitlement to relief rather than merely possible entitlement. Conclusory statements are disregarded.
A defendant may move to dismiss after indictment on the ground that a grand juror was not legally qualified, provided the objection was not previously ruled on and at least twelve qualified jurors concurred in the indictment.
A defendant waives the defense of lack of personal jurisdiction by omitting it from a pre-answer motion or by filing a responsive pleading without raising the defense.
…May 1974, a municipal court found Mrs. Moore guilty of violating the single-family occupancy ordinance. The court overruled her motion to dismiss the charge, rejecting her claim that the ordinance's definition of "family" is invalid on its face under the United States Constitution. The Ohio Court of Appeals affirmed on the authority…