Opinion ID: 775583
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Jurisdiction over Claims Against the United States

Text: 23 We turn next to the Commission's argument that it should have been permitted to bring suit against the United States. As a practical matter, we see little point to the Commission's position because its judgment against the Arkansas River Co. fully covers the amount the Commission expended to repair the bridge, and the cross-claim judgment against the United States held by the Arkansas River Co. insures that it will have the funds to pay the Commission. Regardless of the outcome, the point posited merely implicates from whose pocket the Commission will recover its damages. Nevertheless, we conclude that the district court did not err in denying the Commission's motion to add the United States as a proper party. 24 It is stated often in our decisions that the government is not subject to suit unless it has consented to be sued. See, e.g., Miller v. Tony and Susan Alamo Found., 134 F.3d 910, 915 (8th Cir. 1998). That consent usually comes in the form of a particular statute enacted by Congress, such as § 742 of the SAA, the purported basis for the district court's jurisdiction over the government in this case. Courts must strictly scrutinize any statutory waiver to ensure that Congress intended to authorize the suit, and the waiver must be unequivocally expressed in the statute. Miller, 134 F.3d at 915. Courts are not free to extend or restrict waivers of sovereign immunity beyond what Congress intended. Manypenny v. United States, 948 F.2d 1057, 1063 (8th Cir. 1991). 25 The Commission argues that the district court should not have considered the existence of the DOT's emergency relief funds in making its finding that jurisdiction did not exist for a claim by the Commission against the United States. Because the district court's subject matter jurisdiction was at issue, however, the court was entitled to look beyond the pleadings and beyond the caption in ascertaining the substance of the Commission's claim against the government. 3 And when the emergency relief funds are considered, the Commission's claim, as the district court found, was essentially a claim by the DOT to recover from the United States. Given the unique situation presented by the facts of this case, we agree that Congress did not intend to authorize the Commission's suit against the government under the SAA. Cf. Dep't of Army v. Fed. Labor Relations Auth., 56 F.3d 273, 275-76 (D.C. Cir. 1995) (rejecting argument that sovereign immunity is inapplicable in a government-against-government situation). The Commission argues that even if we agree with the district court, it was still entitled to bring suit against the United States to recover the $32,128 in repair costs it expended out of state funds. The Commission has not briefed the basis or nature of the government's liability for such a claim, and it will nevertheless recover the $32,128 from the Arkansas River Co. once it executes on its judgment. The $32,128 is also included in the contribution judgment that the Arkansas River Co. holds against the government. We therefore decline to consider the argument. 26 The government argues on appeal that the district court lacked jurisdiction over the Arkansas River Co.'s contribution claim on this same basis. The Arkansas River Co., however, does not stand in the same shoes as the Commission. The Arkansas River Co. did not bring its cross-claim on behalf of the DOT. Rather, the Arkansas River Co. brought the cross-claim contribution action to ensure that it was not saddled with liability for which the Corps was responsible. Thus, the same government-versus-government rationale is inapplicable.