Woodbridge v. The City of Greenfield

United States District Court

District of Massachusetts

________________________________________________

)

)

STEPHEN D. WOODBRIDGE and )

ROBERTA BROWNING, )

Plaintiffs, )

)

v. ) CIVIL ACTION

) No. 23-30093-TSH

)

THE CITY OF GREENFIELD, )

Defendant. )

________________________________________________)

Memorandum of Decision and Order

May 29, 2024

HILLMAN, S.D.J.

Background

Stephen D. Woodbridge (“Woodbridge”) and Roberta Browning (“Browning” and

together with Woodbridge, “Plaintiffs”) have filed suit against the City of Greenfield (“City” or

“Defendant”) under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 alleging that the City violated their rights under the

Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution (“Takings Clause”) and the Excess

Fines Clause of the Eighth Amendment (“Excess Fines Clause”) by taking property they owned

to recover unpaid taxes without compensating them for the value of the property in excess of the

amount owed.

.

This Memorandum of Decision and Order addresses Defendant’s Motion To Dismiss

Plaintiffs’ Amended Complaint Pursuant To Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6) For Failure To State A Claim

Upon Which Relief Can Be Granted (Docket No. 7). For the reasons set forth below, that motion

is denied.

Standard of Review

On a Rule 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss, the Court “must assume the truth of all well-

plead[ed] facts and give plaintiff the benefit of all reasonable inferences therefrom.” Ruiz v.

Bally Total Fitness Holding Corp., 496 F.3d 1, 5 (1st Cir. 2007)(citing Rogan v. Menino, 175

F.3d 75, 77 (1st Cir. 1999)). To survive a motion to dismiss, the plaintiff must state a claim that

is plausible on its face. Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570, 127 S.Ct. 1955 (2007).

That is, “[f]actual allegations must be enough to raise a right to relief above the speculative level,

... on the assumption that all the allegations in the complaint are true (even if doubtful in fact).”

Id. at 555 (internal citations omitted). The standard “requires more than labels and conclusions,

and a formulaic recitation of the elements of a cause of action will not do.” Id.

“The plausibility standard is not akin to a ‘probability requirement,’ but it asks for more

than a sheer possibility that a defendant has acted unlawfully.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662,

678, 129 S.Ct. 1937 (2009) (quoting Twombly, 550 U.S. at 556). Dismissal is appropriate if

plaintiff’s well-pleaded facts do not “possess enough heft to show that plaintiff is entitled to

relief.” Ruiz Rivera v. Pfizer Pharm., LLC, 521 F.3d 76, 84 (1st Cir. 2008) (internal quotations

and original alterations omitted). “The relevant inquiry focuses on the reasonableness of the

inference of liability that the plaintiff is asking the court to draw from the facts alleged in the

complaint.” Ocasio-Hernàndez v. Fortuño-Burset, 640 F.3d 1, 13 (1st Cir. 2011).

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Facts

Facts Relating to Woodbridge’s Claims

On August 17, 2011, Woodridge was deeded the family home, located at 87 Stone Ridge

Lane in the City of Greenfield, Massachusetts (“Woodbridge Property”), by his parents, Dudley

and Alice Woodridge. The deed was recorded with the Franklin County Registry of Deeds

(“Registry of Deeds”). The Woodbridge Property was comprised of two parcels: a 6.39-acre

parcel of land which included Woodbridge’s home (“Woodbridge Parcel 1”), and a separate 13-

acre parcel of land (“Woodbridge Parcel 2”). On June 23, 2017, the City recorded two

“Instruments of Taking” against the Woodbridge Property because Woodbridge owed and was

unable to pay $5,761.85 in unpaid taxes, interest, and costs. More specifically, the First

Instrument of Taking was on Woodbridge Parcel 1 as to which Woodbridge owed $4,791.74 in

unpaid taxes, interest, and costs. The second Instrument of Taking was on Woodbridge Parcel 2

as to which Woodridge owed $970.11 in unpaid taxes, interest, and costs. Both Instruments of

Taking were recorded with the Registry of Deeds.

On October 10, 2019, the City filed a Complaint to Foreclose on the Woodbridge

Property with the Massachusetts Land Court (“Land Court”). The Complaint to Foreclose

assessed the value of Woodbridge Parcel 1 at $239,600 and the value of Woodbridge Parcel 2 at

$48,900. On December 20, 2019, the City secured a judgment in the Massachusetts Land Court

authorizing the City’s foreclosure of Woodbridge Parcel 1 and Woodbridge Parcel 2. That

judgment extinguished Woodbridge’s interest in the Woodbridge Property.

On October 20, 2021, the City sold Woodbridge Parcel 1 for $270,000. The City

currently owns Woodbridge Parcel 2, which in 2023 was valued at $50,200, but likely has a

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higher value. In other words, at a minimum, the fair market value of Woodbridge Property at the

time of the execution of the two Instruments of Taking was over $320,000. The City calculated

its costs in taking the Woodbridge Property, including past due taxes and interest, at $54,098.23.

Thus, the City amount the City realized by foreclosing on the Woodbridge Property exceeded the

amount it was owed by more than $270,000. The City has not paid Mr. Woodbridge any portion

of that excess, which represented his equity in the family property.1

Facts Relating to Browning’s Claims

On July 9, 2002, Sybil Moore, reserving a life estate for herself, deeded her home

located at 3 Vernon Street in the City to her daughter, Browning (the “Browning Property”). The

July 9, 2002, deed was recorded with the Registry of Deeds. On April 25, 2016, the City

recorded an Instrument of Taking on the Browning Property based on $1,578.12 in unpaid taxes,

interest, and costs that Ms. Browning owed to the City. The Instrument of Taking was recorded

with the Registry of Deeds.

On January 12, 2017, the City filed a Complaint to Foreclose on the Browning

Property with the Massachusetts Land Court. The Complaint to Foreclose assessed the value of

the Browning Property at $109,900. On July 22, 2019, the City secured a judgment in the Land

Court extinguishing Browning’s interest in the Browning Property. On October 16, 2020, the

City sold the Browning Property for $34,000. The fair market value of the Browning Property

1 As noted, the combined amount of taxes owed on the Woodbridge Property was under $6,000.

Woodbridge Parcel 2 itself was worth over $49,000 and therefore, sale of that property alone would have more than

paid off the tax debt on both properties. Nonetheless, the City chose to foreclose on both properties and doing so,

has realized an enormous windfall. While the statutory scheme may have permitted the City to proceed against both

properties, its choice to take advantage thereof to line its coffers to this extent serves as a stark example why this

statutory scheme is subject to constitutional challenge in multiple cases throughout the Commonwealth.

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was far in excess of the $34,000 that the City received when it sold the property on October 16,

2020, as is evidenced by the fact that: (a) the City had assessed the property at $109,000, and (b)

the purchaser sold the property nine months later, on July 21, 2021, for $272,500. The City

calculated its costs in taking Browning’s property including past due taxes and interest at

$18,455.58. Thus, the amount the City realized by foreclosing on the Browning Property

exceeded the amount it was owed by more than $15,544.52. The City has not paid Browning any

portion of that excess.

The City of Greenfield’s Official Policy

At all times relevant to this dispute, the City maintained an official policy of

retaining the value of property taken from individuals that was in excess of the amounts that

those individuals owed to the City in taxes and other costs related to the property. The City’s

Mayor, Roxann Wedegartner, posted a statement on the City’s website as follows:

I want to assure everyone that tax title taking or foreclosing on residents’ real

property by the city is a rare occasion and only used as a last resort. Nevertheless,

tax payments are the lifeblood of our city and in fairness to all who pay taxes, we

must seek to get real property back on the tax rolls if the owner has fallen

seriously, and sometimes irreparably, behind in payments and do whatever

Massachusetts General Law allows us to do to recoup the taxes. Presently, there is

no legal mechanism for paying owners back for any equity the city may have

retained in the past after all legal fees and expenses have been paid. (Emphasis

added.)

The Mayor’s policy statement reflects that the City is relying on Mass.Gen.L. ch. 60, §

64, which states: “The title conveyed by a tax collector’s deed or by a taking of land for taxes

shall be absolute after foreclosure of the right of redemption by decree of the land court as

provided in this chapter.”

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The Massachusetts Statutory Scheme

Under Massachusetts law, where a taxpayer fails to pay his or her real estate taxes, a

municipality may institute a tax taking, as did the City in this case. Unlike mortgage

foreclosures or executions on money judgments in ordinary civil cases, the tax-foreclosing party

keeps all surplus. Once the right of redemption has been foreclosed, tax title is “absolute” and

neither the property owner nor any party claiming through the owner (such as mortgagees,

lienors, or attaching creditors) has any claim, then or later, to the property or any part of its

value. See Mass.Gen.L. ch. 60 §43 et seq.

More specifically, when a taxpayer fails to pay his or her real estate taxes, the primary

method by which a municipality collects the taxes is by executing a “tax taking” pursuant to

which it obtains “tax title” to the property. See Mass.Gen. L. ch. 60, §53.2 In such a case, the

municipality obtains “tax title” to the property. Tax title “is best understood as legal ownership

of the property subject to the owner’s right of redemption.” Tallage Lincoln, LLC, 485 Mass. at

451; see also Mass.Gen.L. ch. 60, § 53.

Following the taking, the municipality must create a “tax title account,” to which

it can “certify” (i.e., add) subsequent missed tax payments, as well as any fees,

charges, and interest accrued, without having to conduct another taking.

[Mass.Gen. L. ch. 60, §§ 50, 61]. Interest accrues at fourteen percent annually

from the time that the taxes become delinquent until the taking, [Mass.Gen. L. ch.

59, § 57], and increases to sixteen percent annually after the taking, [Mass.Gen. L.

ch. 60, § 62]. If the delinquent taxpayer does not “redeem” the property (i.e., pay

2 A seconds method by which a municipality may proceed is via a tax sale pursuant to which the

municipality issues a “collector’s deed” to the purchaser which gives the purchaser the right to collect the taxes

owed from the taxpayer and foreclose the taxpayer’s right of redemption. See Tallage Lincoln, LLC v. Williams, 485

Mass. 449, 451 (2020)(“Tallage Lincoln LLC”); Mass.Gen.L. ch. §53. While at one time “[t]ax sales [were] the

predominant method of collecting real estate taxes …, they have fallen out of use … and have largely been replaced

by tax takings.” Tallage Lincoln LLC, 485 Mass. at 451.

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the balance of the tax title account) within six months of the taking, the

municipality can petition the Land Court to foreclose the taxpayer’s right of

redemption. [Mass.Gen. L. ch. 60, § 65] … .

Once the petition to foreclose has been filed, the Land Court notifies the

taxpayer and advises him or her of the right to redeem the property and the

requirement to appear and answer the petition by a certain date. [Mass.Gen. L. ch.

60, § 65]. If the taxpayer fails to file a timely response to the petition, the

municipality … may immediately move the court to enter a judgment of

foreclosure of the right of redemption. [Mass.Gen. L. ch. 60, § 67]. If the taxpayer

answers and appears, the municipality … files a request for a finding by the Land

Court regarding the amount of money that the taxpayer must pay in order to

redeem the property. [Mass.Gen. L. ch. 60, § 68]. This redemption amount

includes the amount of taxes certified to the tax title account, as well as any

interest, costs, and fees. Id. In addition, costs and fees associated with the

foreclosure action, including legal fees, are chargeable to the taxpayer.

[Mass.Gen. L. ch. 60, § 65]. The Land Court also sets a deadline for redemption.

[Mass.Gen. L. ch. 60, § 68.]

If the taxpayer does not timely respond to the petition or fails to redeem

the property according to the terms fixed by the Land Court, the court may enter

judgment foreclosing the right of redemption. Upon entry of such judgment, the

municipality … takes absolute title to the property. [Mass.Gen. L. ch. 60, § 69].

[This process is] [k]nown as “strict foreclosure[.]”

…

Strict foreclosure … does not involve any type of sale; rather, the

foreclosure judgment extinguishes the taxpayer’s remaining interest in the

property -- the right of redemption -- and converts the municipality’s … tax title

into absolute title. [Mass.Gen. L. ch. 60, § 64]. In addition, the foreclosing party

takes title free and clear of all encumbrances, including mortgages and other

liens. Id. … Consequently, after a strict foreclosure, the taxpayer loses any equity

he or she has accrued in the property, no matter how small the amount of taxes

due or how large the amount of equity.

Although [Mass.Gen. L. ch. 60, § 69], states that entry of the foreclosure

judgment “shall forever bar all rights of redemption,” the taxpayer may move to

vacate the judgment if he or she pays the redemption amount, plus interest, within

one year. [Mass.Gen. L. ch. 60, § 69A]. After one year, the judgment is final and

can be vacated only upon a showing of a denial of due process.

Tallage Lincoln, LLC, 485 Mass. at 351-352.3

3 In Tallage Lincoln, LLC, the Supreme Judicial Court noted that “[s]everal of our sister States have

determined that excess value from a tax taking must be made available to the taxpayer as a matter of constitutional

law.” The court noted that neither the parties in that case or in a previous case addressing the statutory scheme, Kelly

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Discussion

To establish a claim under Section 1983, the Plaintiffs must allege that they suffered a

deprivation of a right secured by the Constitution or law of the United States by a person acting

under color of state law. 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Plaintiffs allege that the City violated their Fifth

Amendment right which prohibits the government from taking private property for public use

without just compensation. U.S. Const. amend. V. Plaintiffs also allege that the City’s conduct

violated the Excess Fines Clause of the Eight Amendment which prohibits the imposition of

excess fines. U.S. Const. amend. VIII. More specifically, Plaintiffs allege that the City’s

foreclosure of their private property to satisfy tax debts which were less than the fair market

value of said property at the time of the seizure, together with the City’s subsequent refusal to

refund the excess value to them constitutes an unlawful taking of property in violation of the

Fifth Amendment, and imposition of an excess fine in violation of the Eighth Amendment. The

parties have focused on whether Plaintiffs have stated a claim under the Takings Clause and the

Corut will do so as well.

Reyling on the United States Supreme Court’s ruling in Tyler v. Hennepin County, 598

U.S. 631, 143 S.Ct. 1369 (2023), Woodbridge and Browning seek to have the City return the

amount money or value of property it has received/retained as the result of the taking and

foreclosure of their properties in excess of amount they owed for unpaid taxes, interest and costs.

More specifically, Woodbridge and Browning argue that under Tyler, Section 64 violates the

taking and/or excessive fines clauses of the U.S. Constitution to the extent it permits

v. Boston, 348 Mass. 385, 388 (1965)(affirming that the legislature intended that the statutory process result in

forfeiture of taxpayer’s equity to municipality), raised a constitutional challenge to the statutory scheme.

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municipalities to retain amounts received by them in foreclosure proceedings to recover unpaid

taxes in excess of the amounts owed.

Greenfield seeks to dismiss the Plaintiffs’ claims on the grounds that: (1) the City has not

taken independent action to deprive them of their property, rather the City has simply followed

the Commonwealth’s statutory scheme for tax takings; (2) the so-called City “policy” cited by

the Plaintiffs to support their Section 1983 claim under Monell v. Dep’t of Social Servs., 436

U.S. 658, 98 S.Ct. 2018 (1978) is simply a recitation of the City’s compliance with current state

law; and (3) Plaintiffs’ claims are barred by principles of res judicata and claim preclusion based

on the final judgment entered against them in a proceeding in the Land Court involving the same

parties.

Whether a Custom or Policy of the City caused a Deprivation of the Plaintiffs’ Civil Rights;

Whether the Plaintiffs have Identified any Action by the City which Violated their Civil Rights

Have Plaintiffs Plausibly Alleged that a City Custom or Policy Violated their Civil Rights

A municipality can be held liable under Section 1983 if the deprivation of a person’s

rights under the Constitution or federal law is caused by a government custom or policy of the

municipality. See Young v. City of Providence ex rel. Napolitano, 404 F.3d 4, 26 (1st Cir.

2005)(The alleged municipal action at issue must constitute a “policy or custom” attributable to

the City). To establish liability against the City, the Plaintiffs must establish a direct causal link

between a municipal policy or custom and the alleged constitutional deprivation. See City of

Canton v. Harris, 489 U.S. 378, 385, 109 S.Ct. 1197 (1989). The City argues that the Plaintiffs

have not established that it had a custom or policy which violated their rights, rather the so-called

“policy” identified by the Plaintiffs was they City’s conduct in acting in accordance with Chapter

60 of Massachusetts General Laws. However, a few courts have “rejected the notion that a

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municipal defendant can claim reliance on existing state law to shield itself from § 1983 claims

premised on the retention of a taxpayer’s surplus equity.” See Polizzi v. County of Schoharie, --

F.Supp.3d---, 1:23-CV-1311, 2024 WL 1061503, at *4 (N.D.N.Y. Mar. 12, 2024)(municipality

voluntarily and repeatedly served as foreclosing governmental unit and chose to retain proceeds

from each sale; such conduct was a policy decision with direct causal link to alleged

constitutional violation) and cases cited therein. The City has not cited a case within this Circuit

to the contrary. Plaintiffs have alleged that the City had a policy of exercising its discretion under

the Massachusetts Statutory scheme to foreclose on the Plaintiffs’ property and to retain the

excess proceeds/value. The Court finds that at this stage of the proceedings, the Plaintiffs’ have

plausibly stated a claim that the City had a custom or policy that violated their constitutional

rights.

Have the Plaintiffs Plausibly Alleged that the City Violated Their Constitutional Rights

Plaintiffs contend that the City violated their rights under the Takings Clause because in

violation of the Supreme Court’s recent ruling in Tyler, the City retained the surplus value of

their seized properties rather than returning it to them. See Tyler, 598 U.S. at --, 143 S.Ct. at

1376 (while local governments may seize and sell a taxpayer’s home to recover unpaid property

taxes, they may not confiscate more property than was due). The City asserts that it was simply

following the state statutory scheme which not only permitted it to foreclose on the Plaintiffs’

properties but forbade it from paying former homeowners the surplus value of their seized

property after the conclusion of foreclosure proceedings.

Generally, there is no compensable taking when there is a statutory path for property

owners to recover surplus proceeds and the property owners fail to avail themselves of the

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procedure. Thus, the ultimate issue in this case is whether the Massachusetts statutory scheme

includes a procedure whereby a former holder of a legal interest in property may claim and

receive any remaining proceeds resulting from the foreclosure and sale of such property to

satisfy delinquent property taxes. See Tyler, 598 U.S. at --, 143 S.Ct. at 179 (State committed

classic taking where its statutory scheme provided no opportunity for the taxpayer to recover

excess value after foreclosure; once absolute title transferred to the State, any excess value

remains with the State).

Defendant asserts Tyler does not implicate the Massachusetts statutory scheme as the

Supreme Court, while finding unconstitutional a Minnesota statutory scheme that failed to

provide any opportunity for a taxpayer to retain their equity in the property, reaffirmed a New

York statutory scheme which allows taxpayers a judicial process, albeit a limited one, to recover

surplus proceeds from a judicial sale. See Tyler, 598 U.S. at --, 143 S.Ct. at 1378-79. More

specifically, the New York stator scheme provides the taxpayer/property owner with the right to

seek a sale of the property where he or she can establish that the value of the property exceeds

the tax delinquency. If the sale exceeds the amount owed, the taxpayer/property owner is allowed

to retain the surplus proceeds. According to the City, the Massachusetts statutory scheme is

similar to New York’s in that the Land Court has the authority to order a judicial sale and reserve

the surplus equity for the taxpayer rather than go the Chapter 60 foreclosure route -- a taxpayer

facing foreclosure simply need request such relief from the Land Court.

The Court need not belabor the discussion on this point. The circumstances of the case

cited by the City, Town of Arlington, v. Holman, et al., Case No. 14 TL 148209, (Mass. Land

Court Nov 30, 2016) are dissimilar from the instant case and if not all, at least substantially all,

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cases brought under Mass.Gen.L. ch. 60. In the Holmes’ case, there were questions regarding the

ownership of the property prior to the municipality foreclosing thereon (due to the owner’s

death, provisions for life estates, and lack of probate) and whether interested parties received

notice of the tax deficiencies. Indeed, the Court ordered that the property be sold to satisfy the

tax lien rather than through Chapter 60’s foreclosure so that the expected large surplus could go

to the heirs. In doing so, the Court noted that there may be an obligation under the state

constitution to order such a sale in the circumstances of that case and the municipality did not

object. There is nothing in the opinion which suggests that this procedure was or would

necessarily be available to every taxpayer.

The City cites to another case, Tallage LLC v. Meaney, No. 11 TL 143094, 2015 WL

4207424 (Mass. Land Ct. Jun. 26, 2015)(“Tallage”) which concerns tax debts that had been sold

by a municipality to private partues who are then given the right to step into the municipality’s

shoes and proceed with collection actions pursuant to Chapter 60. In Tallege, the owner of two

properties foreclosed on sought to vacate the foreclosure judgment which cut off their right of

redemption. The City cites Tallage to support its assertion (discussed below) that taxpayers such

as the Plaintiffs have the right to raise constitutional claims concerning the Massachusetts tax

taking procedures with the Land Court. It is interesting to note, however, that in analyzing the

issues before it, the court discussed the numerous procedures available to a taxpayer where the

municipality invokes the Massachusetts statutory foreclosure scheme, including (1) the

municipality may reduce the interest owed (interest accrues on the overdue tax payment at a rate

of 14% from the time they are due and increases to 16% after the collector’s sale or tax taking

occurs); (2) the municipality may apply to the Commissioner of the Department of Revenue for a

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reduction in principal owed: and (3) the Land Court has the discretion to make a finding allowing

the taxpayer to redeem his property within a fixed time. Id., at *4. Additionally, within a year

after the Land Court enters the foreclosure judgment (thus cutting off the right of redemption), in

order to accomplish justice, the Land Court may vacate a judgment foreclosing redemption. Id.

The court noted that there is little authority on its powers to address the inequities of the statutory

scheme. Notably, for purposes of the City’s argument, the court does not mention that a taxpayer

has the right to request the property be sold to satisfy the tax lien so that he or she may retain the

right to any surplus proceeds.

Based on the City’s own submissions, the Massachusetts statutory scheme does not

provide the taxpayer the right to recover the surplus value from a municipality proceeding under

Chapter 60. Moreover, in its reply brief, the City notes that in response to the Supreme Court’s

ruling in Tyler, the Massachusetts Department of Revenue has issued a Department of Revenue

Bulletin (“DOR Bulletin”) which notes that by operation of law, surplus funds cannot be

returned to the taxpayer but must be transferred into the municipality’s general funds. At the

same time, the DOR Bulletin provides limited permission, in light of Tyler, for municipalities to

hold such proceeds for future tax taking foreclosure proceedings in agency accounts pending

instructions from legislature or courts4. The City’s interpretation of this DOR Bulletin is that in

light of Tyler, municipalities may be required to return such surplus proceeds to taxpayers in the

4 Under the DOR Bulletin, instead of transferring the surplus sale proceeds into its general funds, may

transfer them into an “agency account”, that is, the municipality may effectively escrow such proceeds, until there is

a determination by the courts or legislation as to how such proceeds are to be distributed.

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future. It may well be the case that Tyler is not to be applied retroactively, but the parties have

not addressed that issue and the Court declines to do so without their input. What can be gleaned

from the DOR Bulletin is that the Massachusetts Department of Revenue is cognizant of the

likelihood that the Massachusetts statutory scheme will be found to be unconstitutional.

The Court finds that the Massachusetts statutory scheme is closer to that of Minnesota’s,

which the Supreme Court struck down, than New York’s (which, as part of its statutory scheme,

provides a taxpayer the right to seek a judicial sale of the property where there is likely to be

surplus proceeds). Accordingly, the Court finds that Plaintiffs have plausibly alleged that the

Massachusetts statutory scheme is unconstitutional under Tyler, and that the City wrongfully

retained the surplus proceeds/value from the taking of their properties. Accord Mills v.

Springfield, Civ.Act. No. 2379CV00545, slip op. (Super.Ct. Apr. 18, 2024)(finding that Chapter

60 does not provide a procedure whereby delinquent landowner may recover the value of his or

her property above amount owed when real property is taken to satisfy debts to municipality and

therefore, violates taking clause of art. 10 of the Massachusetts Declaration of Rights and the

Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution).

Whether the Plaintiffs’ Claims are Barred by Principles of Res Judicata

The City asserts that principles of res judicata bar Plaintiffs from bringing this action

because the respective foreclosure judgments in the Land Court involved the same parties and

their claims challenging the constitutionality of the Massachusetts statutory scheme could have

and should have been brought in that court. See Heacock v. Heacock, 402 Mass. 21, 23 & n.2

1988 (the res judicata refers to the doctrine by which a judgment in one action has a binding

effect in a subsequent action; claim preclusion is the doctrine by which a valid, final judgment is

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deemed conclusive on the parties and their privies and bars further litigation of all matters that

were or should have been raised in the first action). A lengthy discussion of the City’s claim

preclusion argument is not warranted. I agree with the Plaintiffs that their claims in this suit: (1)

do not share a common “identity of the cause of action” which was before the Land Court, i.e.,

the foreclosure of their properties (which are not being challenged in this Court), and (2) the

claims in this action seeking the surplus proceeds from the foreclosure sales are based on facts

which arose after the conclusion of the Land Court proceedings. See Residential Funding Co.

LLC v. Randle, Civ.Act.No. 13-40076-TSH, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 167344 at *3-8 (D.Mass.

Nov. 25, 2013); States Resource Corp. v. Capizzi, Civ.Act.No. 04-10095-DPW, 2005 U.S.Dist.

LEXIS 956 at *25-26 (D.Mass. Jan. 20, 2005).

Conclusion

Defendant’s Motion To Dismiss Plaintiffs’ Amended Complaint Pursuant To

Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6) For Failure To State A Claim Upon Which Relief Can Be Granted (Docket

No. 7) is denied.

/s/ Timothy S. Hillman

TIMOTHY S. HILLMAN

DISTRICT JUDGE

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