On March 10, Jean Russell, a Pennsylvania resident, sued Nicholas A. Durkin, Treasure Chest, Inc., and eBay, Inc. in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio.
Defendant eBay is a Delaware corporation with its principal executive offices in San Jose, California. eBay runs a popular Internet auction site. Defendant Durkin is a registered user of eBay who sold items using the name Treasure Chest, Inc. Durkin and Treasure Chest, Inc. are residents of Toledo, Ohio.
Plaintiff alleges that on or about September 17, he went to the eBay website and purchased ten laptop computers on eBay from Defendants Durkin/Treasure Chest, Inc. The purchase price was $ 175.00 per computer, for a total of $ 1750.00. Plaintiff paid for the computers with money orders, but he alleges that the items were never delivered. He seeks to hold eBay jointly responsible for the misconduct of Durkin/Treasure Chest, Inc. He seeks $ 1750.00 in compensatory damages and $ 1,750,000.00 in punitive damages. The Defendants move to have the case dismissed.
How should this federal court rule on the defendant’s motion to dismiss the case? Explain