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activities of the defendants that resulted in the “demise” of
petitioner’s and HGTG’s Toyota dealership. Likewise, the 13
counts allege injuries and damages that are commercial in nature,
and, although some of the counts sound in tort as the cause of
action, no claim of mental stress or depression is set forth in
the 13 counts.
Subsequent to the complaint’s being filed, Toyota Motor
Sales, U.S.A., Inc., and Toyota Motor Credit Corp. (the
defendants) argued in HGTG’s bankruptcy proceeding that Goodman
and Kilborn could not represent both petitioner’s and HGTG’s
interests, and the attorneys elected to represent petitioner.
The defendants also moved to dismiss petitioner from the case on
the grounds that he was not a party to the dealership agreement
and that the alleged injuries were to the corporation and not
petitioner. In those motions and related documents, the
defendants pointed out that the complaint focused on commercial
harm to the corporate entity and that no claim appeared to have
been made with respect to petitioner. The defendants’ motion was
referred to a magistrate judge, who issued a report and
recommendation that set forth a proposed denial of the
defendants’ motion, and the report was adopted by a U.S. District
Court Judge. The report did not address the merits of the cause
of action but contained the conclusion that it was premature for
a court to decide whether petitioner had standing. The report
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Last modified: May 25, 2011