Opinion ID: 796150
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Standards of review and construction of pro se submissions

Text: 14 Where, as here, a district court grants a defendant's Rule 12(b)(1) motion to dismiss, we review the district court's legal conclusions de novo, Aurecchione v. Schoolman Transp. Sys., Inc., 426 F.3d 635, 638 (2d Cir.2005), and must accept as true all material factual allegations in the complaint, J.S. ex rel. N.S. v. Attica Cent. Schs., 386 F.3d 107, 110 (2d Cir.2004). See also Scheuer v. Rhodes, 416 U.S. 232, 236, 94 S.Ct. 1683, 40 L.Ed.2d 90 (1974). 15 It is well established that the submissions of a pro se litigant must be construed liberally and interpreted to raise the strongest arguments that they suggest. Pabon, 459 F.3d at 248 (emphasis added) (quoting Burgos, 14 F.3d at 790); see also Brownell v. Krom, 446 F.3d 305, 310 (2d Cir.2006); Forsyth v. Fed'n Employment & Guidance Serv., 409 F.3d 565, 569 (2d Cir.2005); Sharpe v. Conole, 386 F.3d 482, 484 (2d Cir.2004); Wright v. Comm'r., 381 F.3d 41, 44 (2d Cir.2004); Jorgensen v. Epic/Sony Records, 351 F.3d 46, 50 (2d Cir.2003); Bennett v. Goord, 343 F.3d 133, 137 (2d Cir.2003); Weixel v. New York City Bd. of Educ., 287 F.3d 138, 145-46 (2d Cir.2002); Cruz v. Gomez, 202 F.3d 593, 597 (2d Cir.2000); McPherson v. Coombe, 174 F.3d 276, 280 (2d Cir.1999); Graham v. Henderson, 89 F.3d 75, 79 (2d Cir.1996). 16 This policy of liberally construing pro se submissions is driven by the understanding that [i]mplicit in the right of self-representation is an obligation on the part of the court to make reasonable allowances to protect pro se litigants from inadvertent forfeiture of important rights because of their lack of legal training. Traguth v. Zuck, 710 F.2d 90, 95 (2d Cir. 1983); see also Ruotolo v. I.R.S., 28 F.3d 6, 8 (2d Cir.1994) (recognizing that pro se litigants must be accorded special solicitude). See generally Jonathan D. Rosenbloom, Exploring Methods to Improve Management and Fairness in Pro Se Cases: A Study of the Pro Se Docket in the Southern District of New York, 30 FORDHAM URB. L.J. 305, 380 (2002) (In this time of ever increasing legal costs and complexity of litigation, the pro se litigant is at an insurmountable disadvantage.).