Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-cand-5_19-cv-02078/USCOURTS-cand-5_19-cv-02078-1/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 370
Nature of Suit: Other Fraud
Cause of Action: 28:1332 Diversity-(Citizenship)

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United States District Court

Northern District of California

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

GILBERT L. LOAEC 2014 TRUST, et al.,

Plaintiffs,

v.

ROMONA A. DOHENY,

Defendant.

Case No. 19-cv-02078-NC 

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE RE: 

STATEMENT NOTING DEATH 

AND WHETHER THE CASE

SHOULD BE STAYED OR 

DISMISSED

On August 16, 2019, the Court ordered plaintiffs Gilbert L. Loaec 2014 Trust

(“Trust”), Gilbert L. Loaec, and Yvonne Loaec-Russ1to proffer evidence that Yvonne was 

the trustee of the Trust and was authorized to act as the attorney-in-fact for Loaec. See

Dkt. No. 23. Plaintiffs responded on August 23, 2019. See Dkt. No. 24. In her response, 

Yvonne asserted that Loaec passed away on June 5, 2019, two months after Plaintiffs filed 

their complaint. Id. ¶ 5.

Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 25(a)(2), when a party dies, “[t]he death 

should be noted on the record.” The decedent’s successor or representative must then

move to substitute the deceased party “within 90 days after service of a statement noting 

the death, [or] the action by . . . the decedent must be dismissed.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 25(a)(1).

 

1 As with the Court’s prior order, the Court will refer to Yvonne Loaec-Russ by her first 

name for brevity and clarity.

Case 5:19-cv-02078-NC Document 25 Filed 08/23/19 Page 1 of 2
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United States District Court

Northern District of California

Plaintiffs have not filed a statement noting death nor have they moved to substitute 

the proper party. Accordingly, the Court ORDERS Plaintiffs to file a statement noting 

Loaec’s death by August 30, 2019. If Plaintiffs believe that Loaec’s claim is not 

extinguished by his death, they must file a motion to substitute the proper party by August 

30, 2019, or the Court will dismiss Loaec and Yvonne in her capacity as Loaec’s attorneyin-fact. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 25(a)(1). Plaintiffs must serve that notice and the motion to 

substitute, if any, on defendant Romona A. Doheny and any interested parties. See Fed. R. 

Civ. P. 25(a)(3).

Because this lawsuit essentially seeks to adjudicate the parties’ interest in what is 

now Loaec’s estate, it appears that the probate exception to federal subject matter 

jurisdiction may apply. See Gonclaves v. Rady Children’s Hosp. San Diego, 865 F.3d 

1237, 1252 (9th Cir. 2017) (“In sum, the probate exception prevents a federal court from 

probating a will, administering a decedent's estate, or disposing of property in the custody 

of a state probate court.”) Accordingly, the Court ORDERS the parties to meet and confer 

and file a joint status report by September 6, 2019, addressing whether the Court should 

stay or dismiss this lawsuit. The Court will not rule on the pending motion to dismiss 

(Dkt. No. 15) until the jurisdictional questions are clarified.

This order discharges the August 16, 2019, order to show cause. See Dkt. No. 23. 

Doheny does not need to respond to that order.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

Dated: August 23, 2019 _____________________________________

NATHANAEL M. COUSINS

United States Magistrate Judge

Case 5:19-cv-02078-NC Document 25 Filed 08/23/19 Page 2 of 2