Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-caed-2_18-cv-02844/USCOURTS-caed-2_18-cv-02844-6/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 550
Nature of Suit: Prisoner - Civil Rights (U.S. defendant)
Cause of Action: 42:1983 Prisoner Civil Rights

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

BENJY WADE,

Plaintiff,

v.

J. RUBALCABA, et al.,

Defendants.

No. 2: 18-cv-2844 KJM KJN P

ORDER

Plaintiff is a state prisoner, proceeding without counsel, with a civil rights action pursuant 

to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. This action proceeds on plaintiff’s fourth amended complaint. (ECF No. 

22.) Pending before the court is defendants’ motion to dismiss pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil 

Procedure 12(b)(6). (ECF No. 40.) Defendants move to dismiss for failure to state a claim and 

on the grounds that plaintiff failed to exhaust administrative remedies. See Albino v. Baca, 747 

F.3d 1162, 1169 (9th Cir. 2014) (en banc) (defendants may raise issue of administrative 

exhaustion in a motion to dismiss pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6) if the failure to exhaust is clear on the 

face of the complaint). 

For the reasons stated herein, the undersigned converts defendants’ motion to dismiss for 

failure to exhaust administrative remedies to a summary judgment motion and grants plaintiff an 

opportunity to file a supplemental opposition.

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Legal Standards

If “matters outside the pleadings are ... not excluded by the court, the motion must be 

treated as one for summary judgment under Rule 56.” Fed. R. Civ. Pro. 12(d); Hal Roach 

Studios, Inc. v. Richard Feiner & Co., 896 F.2d 1542, 1550 (9th Cir. 1989). “Whether to convert 

a Rule 12(b)(6) motion into one for summary judgment pursuant to Rule 12(d) is at the discretion 

of the district court.” Adobe Sys. Inc. v. Blue Source Grp., Inc., 125 F. Supp. 3d 945, 968 (N.D. 

Cal. 2015).

“Because Rule 12(d) requires that ‘[a]ll parties must be given a reasonable opportunity to 

present all the material that is pertinent to the motion,’ such a decision requires that courts 

consider whether the Parties have sufficient notice and an opportunity to respond.” Sundby v. 

Marquee Funding Group, Inc., 2020 WL 434487, at *2 (S.D. Cal. Jan. 28, 2020) (citations 

omitted). 

Discussion

Citing grievance no. 18-1854 attached to plaintiff’s third amended complaint, defendants 

move to dismiss on the grounds that plaintiff failed to exhaust administrative remedies before 

filing this action.1 (ECF No. 40-1 at 3, 5.) Jones v. Block, 549 U.S. 199, 211 (2007) (prisoners 

are required to exhaust the available administrative remedies prior to filing suit). 

In the fourth amended complaint, plaintiff alleges that he exhausted administrative 

remedies as to all claims. (ECF No. 22.) The fourth amended complaint cites no administrative 

grievances in support of this claim. No administrative grievances are attached to the fourth 

amended complaint as exhibits. However, in his opposition to the motion to dismiss, plaintiff 

1 Defendants state that grievance no. 18-1854 attached to the third amended complaint is 

incorporated by reference in the fourth amended complaint. However, as discussed herein, the 

fourth amended complaint does not reference any grievance. Therefore, whether grievance no. 

18-1854, attached to the third amended complaint, may be incorporated by reference is 

questionable. See Knievel v. ESPN, 393 F.3d 1068, 1076 (9th Cir. 2005) (citations omitted) (the 

incorporation by reference doctrine permits courts to take into account documents “whose 

contents are alleged in a complaint and whose authenticity no party questions, but which are not 

physically attached to the [plaintiff’s] pleading.”). The undersigned finds that the better approach 

in these circumstances is to convert defendants’ motion to dismiss to a summary judgment 

motion.

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alleges that he exhausted his administrative remedies on January 11, 2019, in grievance no. 18-

1854. (ECF No. 42.) Plaintiff’s grievances filed in grievance no. 18-1854 are attached as 

exhibits to plaintiff’s third amended complaint. (ECF No. 18.)

It is not clear from the face of plaintiff’s fourth amended complaint that plaintiff failed to 

exhaust administrative remedies. However, after reviewing grievance no. 18-1854, it appears to 

the undersigned that plaintiff failed to exhaust administrative remedies prior to filing this action. 

In order to consider grievance no. 18-1854, attached to the third amended complaint, the 

undersigned converts defendants’ motion to dismiss for failure to exhaust administrative remedies 

to a summary judgment motion.

Accordingly, plaintiff is informed that the undersigned intends to convert defendants’ 

motion to dismiss for failure to exhaust administrative remedies to a summary judgment motion

so that grievance no. 18-1854 may be considered.

2

 Plaintiff is granted an opportunity to file a 

supplemental opposition addressing defendants’ argument that he failed to exhaust administrative 

remedies prior to filing this action. 

Pursuant to Rand v. Rowland, 154 F.3d 952, 957 (9th Cir. 1998) (en banc), and Klingele 

v. Eikenberry, 849 F.2d 409 (9th Cir. 1988), the court hereby informs plaintiff of the following 

requirements for opposing a motion for summary judgment pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil 

Procedure 56. Such a motion is a request for an order for judgment in favor of the defendant 

without trial. A defendant’s motion for summary judgment will set forth the facts that the 

defendant contends are not reasonably subject to dispute and that entitle the defendant to 

judgment. To oppose a motion for summary judgment, plaintiff must show proof of his or her 

claims. Plaintiff may do this in one or more of the following ways. Plaintiff may rely on 

plaintiff’s statements made under penalty of perjury in the complaint if the complaint shows that 

plaintiff has personal knowledge of the matters stated and plaintiff specifies those parts of the 

2

It is clear that the issue of whether plaintiff exhausted administrative remedies would not benefit 

from additional discovery as the court file contains the relevant grievance, i.e., grievance no. 18-

1854. See Rupert -Torres v. Hospital San Pablo, Inc., 205 F.3d 472, 475 (9th Cir. 2000) (if a 

claim or defense would benefit from additional discovery, a court is likely to not consider the 

documents, and forego converting the motion to dismiss into a summary judgment motion). 

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complaint on which plaintiff relies. Plaintiff may serve and file one or more affidavits or 

declarations setting forth the facts that plaintiff believes prove plaintiff’s claims; the person who 

signs an affidavit or declaration must have personal knowledge of the facts stated. Plaintiff may 

rely on written records, but plaintiff must prove that the records are what plaintiff asserts they are. 

Plaintiff may rely on all or any part of the transcript of one or more depositions, answers to 

interrogatories, or admissions obtained in this proceeding. If plaintiff fails to contradict the 

defendant’s evidence with counteraffidavits or other admissible evidence, the court may accept 

defendant’s evidence as true and grant the motion. If there is some good reason why such facts 

are not available to plaintiff when required to oppose a motion for summary judgment, the court 

will consider a request to postpone consideration of the defendant’s motion. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 

56(d). If plaintiff does not serve and file a written opposition to the motion, or a request to 

postpone consideration of the motion, the court may consider the failure to act as a waiver of 

opposition to the defendant’s motion. See L.R. 230(l). If the court grants the motion for 

summary judgment, whether opposed or unopposed, judgment will be entered for the defendant 

without a trial and the case will be closed as to that defendant.

Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that:

1. Defendants’ motion to dismiss for failure to exhaust administrative remedies is 

converted to a summary judgment motion;

2. Plaintiff is granted thirty days from the date of this order to file a supplemental 

opposition addressing why defendants should not be granted summary judgment based 

on plaintiff’s failure to exhaust administrative remedies prior to filing this action; 

defendants may file a supplemental reply within fourteen days thereafter.

Dated: May 11, 2020

Wade2844.con

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