Dillenberg

MEMORANDUM **

Plaintiff Westech Laboratories appeals from the district court’s order dismissing Westech’s complaint for failure to state a claim. See Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6). We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 and we affirm.

This case is guided by the Supreme Court’s decision in Paul v. Davis, 424 U.S. 693 , 96 S.Ct. 1155 , 47 L.Ed.2d 405 (1976), where the Court held that the stigmatization of a person by the government, without more, does not constitute a violation of due process. Id. at 711-12 , 96 S.Ct. 1155 . This “stigma plus” test, as we have dubbed it, requires a plaintiff to demonstrate both reputational harm and “also that the state action deprived the plaintiff of a protected liberty or property interest or a status recognized by the state.” WMX Technologies, Inc. v. Miller, 197 F.3d 367, 376 (9th Cir.1999) (en banc). So, for instance, we have held that when a business’s goodwill is protected by state law as a property interest, damage to that interest may constitute an actionable “plus” in the “stigma plus” test. Soranno’s Gaseco, Inc. v. Morgan, 874 F.2d 1310 , 1316 (9th Cir.1989).

Here, Westech attempts to characterize its claim as falling within the…