Opinion ID: 696239
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Is INMECAFE an Agency of the Mexican Government?

Text: 21 Export Group argues on appeal that INMECAFE is not an agency or instrumentality of the Mexican government and therefore cannot avail itself of sovereign immunity under 28 U.S.C. Sec. 1603(b). This is a novel position for the Export Group to take on appeal, since it repeatedly and consistently argued below that INMECAFE was an agency or representative of the Mexican Government. 22 INMECAFE bears the burden of proof to establish its entitlement to sovereign immunity under the FSIA before the burden shifts to the plaintiff to establish an exception. Meadows v. Dominican Republic, 817 F.2d 517, 522-23 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 484 U.S. 976, 108 S.Ct. 486, 98 L.Ed.2d 485 (1987). INMECAFE met its burden in the district court by submitting official Mexican government documents and a sworn affidavit of INMECAFE's counsel that establish INMECAFE's authority under Mexican law to act as a dependency of the [Mexican] Ministry of Agriculture and Cattle.... Moreover, the Export Group's pleadings below conceded this fact. See American Commercial Barge Lines, Co., v. N.L.R.B., 758 F.2d 1109, 1104 n. 2 (6th Cir.1985) (stating that one party's burden of proof may be satisfied by admissions in the other party's pleadings). 23 The Export Group argues that it may contest this issue on appeal because this court has recognized that plaintiffs are not limited to the statutory basis for subject matter jurisdiction stated in their complaint. Gerritsen v. de la Madrid Hurtado, 819 F.2d 1511, 1515 (9th Cir.1987). Appellants misconstrue Gerritsen, which explicitly limits plaintiffs to the facts alleged in their complaint, but allows those facts to establish subject matter jurisdiction on some other statutory basis. Id. Here, however, the Export Group attempts to plead facts different from those in their complaint, without explanation for their failure to discover these facts earlier. See International Union of Bricklayers & Allied Craftsman v. Martin Jaska, Inc., 752 F.2d 1401, 1404 (9th Cir.1985) (stating that before this court will address such an issue the proponent must show exceptional circumstances why the issue was not raised below) (quotations and citations omitted). Accordingly, we refuse to consider the Export Group's newly asserted facts. United States v. Elias, 921 F.2d 870, 874 (9th Cir.1990) (stating that facts and documents not presented to the district court are not part of the record on appeal); United States v. Patrin, 575 F.2d 708, 712 (9th Cir.1978); see also Gregorian v. Izvestia, 871 F.2d 1515, 1528 (9th Cir.) (refusing to resolve factual dispute as to jurisdiction as a result of facts urged by plaintiff that were not pleaded in the plaintiff's complaint), cert. denied, 493 U.S. 891, 110 S.Ct. 237, 107 L.Ed.2d 188 (1989). 24