Plaintiff Ted Pauly purchased several beers and mixed drinks at the Houlihan’s Restaurant in Brick, New Jersey. However, the prices of these stuffs were not listed but still offered on the menu. After receiving the check from restaurant, Pauly had to pay it in full price. As a result, he complained that the prices were unreasonable high and proposed a class action for breaching the contract and unjust enrichment against Houlihan’s Restaurants. In term of breaching of contract, Defendant assumes that Pauly received exactly what he paid and he agreed the price without protest when he paid the bill. Moreover, Houlihan’s restaurant also believe that it did not receive any services or profit from Plaintiff, as a result, Plaintiff fails to state a claim for unjust enrichment. Defendant argues that Plaintiff’s claims should be dismissed because Houlihan’s Restaurant is just a franchisor. Finally, the Court rejected Defendants’ arguments. …show more content…
As a general rule, a district court considering a 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss relies on "the complaint, attached exhibits, and matters of public record." Sands v. McCormick, 502 F.3d 263, 268 (3d Cir. 2007); see also In re Burlington Coat Factory, 114 F.3d at 1425. The Plaintiff accuses Defendant that Houlihan's owns, operates, and/or controls the operations of restaurants, thus, the menu is created also by Houlihan’s. As a result, Defendant had a sufficiently direct relationship with Plaintiff to support claims for breach of contract and unjust