Document ID: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-ca10-93-03020/USCOURTS-ca10-93-03020-0/pdf.json

Parties Involved:
William C. Foss
Appellant
State of Kansas
Appellee

Document Text:

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Fl Lb D 

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS United STtatesth~f~ Appeal en 

WILLIAM C. FOSS, 

Plaintiff-Appellant, 

TENTH CIRCUIT MAY 2 6 1993 

ROBERT L. HOECKER 

Clerk 

No. 93-3020 

(D.C. No. 92-4236-DES) 

v. 

STATE OF KANSAS, 

Defendant-Appellee. 

ORDER AND JUDGMENT* 

(D. Kan.) 

Before McKAY, Chief Judge, SETH and BARRETT, Circuit Judges. 

After examining the briefs and appellate record, this panel 

has detennined unanimously that oral argument would not materially 

assist the detennination of this appeal. See Fed. R. App. P. 

34(a); Tenth Cir. R. 34.1.9. The cause is therefore ordered 

submitted without oral argument. 

Appellant William c. Foss appeals the order of the 

United States District Court for the District of Kansas granting 

Appellee State of Kansas' motion to dismiss for lack of subject 

matter jurisdiction. For the reasons stated below, we affinn. 

*This order and judgment has no precedential value and shall not 

be cited, or used by any court within the Tenth Circuit, except 

for purposes of establishing the doctrines of the law of the case, 

res judicata, or collateral estoppel. 10th Cir. R. 36.3. 

Appellate Case: 93-3020 Document: 010110115192 Date Filed: 05/26/1993 Page: 1 
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Appellant had filed an action alleging malpractice and fraud 

against his attorney in state district court. The state district 

court granted summary judgment against Appellant, and the court of 

appeals affirmed. The Kansas Supreme Court denied review. 

Appellant subsequently brought this claim against the State 

of Kansas in federal district court, alleging that the State of 

Kansas violated his Seventh and Fourteenth Amendment rights by 

denying him a jury trial. The court granted the State's motion to 

dismiss on Eleventh Amendment grounds. 

The Eleventh Amendment provides: 

"The Judicial power of the United States shall 

not be construed to extend to any suit in law 

or equity, commenced or prosecuted against one 

of the United States by Citizens of another 

State, or by Citizens or Subjects of any 

Foreign State." 

U.S. Const. Amend. 11. Although Appellant is a citizen of Kansas, 

the Eleventh Amendment has been construed to bar suits against a 

state by its own citizens. Meade v. Grubbs, 841 F.2d 1512 (10th 

Cir.). See also, Hans v. Louisiana, 134 U.S. 1. 

Because the State of Kansas is protected by the immunity 

provided by the Eleventh Amendment, we are jurisdictionally barred 

from hearing Appellant's claim. 

Accordingly, the order of the District Court for the District 

of Kansas is AFFIRMED. 

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Entered for the Court 

Oliver Seth 

Circuit Judge 

Appellate Case: 93-3020 Document: 010110115192 Date Filed: 05/26/1993 Page: 2