Opinion ID: 2975414
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: The Exclusivity Provision

Text: The plaintiffs attempt to bring an ambiguous statutory cause of action under Title III and FISA jointly, based on their allegation that the TSP violates the “exclusivity provision” of § 2511(2)(f). The exclusivity provision states that Title III and FISA “shall be the exclusive means by which electronic surveillance, as defined in section 101 of [FISA], and the interception of domestic wire, oral, and electronic communications may be conducted.” 18 U.S.C. § 2511(2)(f). This provision contains two separate and independent, albeit parallel, statements: (1) Title III “shall be the exclusive means by which . . . the interception of domestic wire, oral, and electronic communications may be conducted,” and (2) FISA “shall be the exclusive means by which electronic surveillance, as defined in section 101 of [FISA] . . . may be conducted.” This provision does not foreclose the possibility that the government may engage in certain surveillance activities that are outside of the strictures of both Title III and FISA. The plaintiffs cannot assert a viable cause of action under this provision. It is undisputed that the NSA intercepts international, rather than domestic, communications, so, as already explained, Title III does not apply. Moreover, because the plaintiffs have not shown, and cannot show, that the NSA engages in activities satisfying the statutory definition of “electronic surveillance,” the plaintiffs cannot demonstrate that FISA does apply. Consequently, this entire provision is inapplicable to the present circumstances. The plaintiffs, however, read this provision as stating that Title III and FISA are together the “exclusive means” by which the NSA can intercept any communication, and that these two statutes collectively govern every interception (i.e., if not FISA then Title III, and if not Title III then FISA — there are no other options). Specifically, the plaintiffs contend that the NSA cannot lawfully conduct any wiretapping (under the TSP or otherwise) in a manner that is outside both the Title III and the FISA frameworks; the NSA’s conduct must fall within the governance of one statute or the other. Based on this reading, the plaintiffs believe that they need not demonstrate the specific applicability of either statute — that is, they need not demonstrate either that the NSA is engaging in “electronic surveillance,” in order to place it under FISA,41 or that the NSA is engaging in domestic surveillance, in order to place it under Title III. The plaintiffs’ theory is premised on the assertion that FISA and Title III, collectively, require warrants for the legal interception of any and all communications, and appears to be that because the NSA has publicly admitted to intercepting certain overseas communications without warrants, one must infer that the NSA has violated one or the other of these two statutes. The consequence of this inference — the plaintiffs would have us find — is a violation of § 2511(2)(f), which is not a violation of either Title III or FISA individually, but instead a violation of the collective application of the two. Thus, according to the plaintiffs, the NSA has violated the “exclusivity provision” of § 2511(2)(f), and based on this (presumed) violation, the plaintiffs have standing to bring a cause of action under this statutory provision. The intended inferential “logic” of the plaintiffs’ theory falls apart upon recognition of their faulty premise. As previously explained, “electronic surveillance” under FISA does not cover all types of foreign surveillance, but instead has a very particular and detailed definition. The plaintiffs point to no provision in FISA, Title III, or any other statute that states that the four definitions “electronic surveillance” listed in FISA are the only kind of “electronic surveillance” that could ever be conducted. And the fact that the “exclusivity provision” is expressly limited to electronic surveillance “as defined in section 101 of [FISA]” leaves room to infer that other electronic 41 This, of course, begs the question of why Congress would define “electronic surveillance” — in four explicit ways — if, as the plaintiffs contend, a demonstration that the interception is “electronic surveillance” is unnecessary. Nos. 06-2095/2140 Am. Civil Liberties Union, et al. v. Nat’l Sec. Agency, et al. Page 33 surveillance is possible. Therefore, the plaintiffs cannot prove that FISA applies. More importantly, this inability to prove that the interceptions are “electronic surveillance” does not, as the plaintiffs theorize, lead to an inescapable conclusion that Title III applies. It simply means that FISA does not apply. On the other hand, it is irrefutable under the first clause of § 2511(2)(f) that Title III does not apply to this case because the NSA’s wiretapping activities are focused on international, rather than domestic, communications. To read this entire statute in the way that the plaintiffs suggest is to create an internal contradiction, which courts are loath to do. Rather, the unavailability of the evidence necessary to prove (or disprove) that the NSA is engaging in “electronic surveillance” compels a conclusion that the plaintiffs cannot demonstrate that either statute applies. But even assuming, arguendo, that the plaintiffs have posited a proper reading of the exclusivity provision, and that the NSA’s warrantless wiretapping violates that provision, “the fact that a federal statute has been violated and some person harmed does not automatically give rise to a private cause of action in favor of that person.” Cannon v. Univ. of Chicago, 441 U.S. 677, 688 (1979). The question of whether a statute implicitly creates a cause of action “is basically a matter of statutory construction.” Transam. Mortgage Advisors, Inc. v. Lewis, 444 U.S. 11, 15 (1979). “The ultimate question is one of congressional intent, not one of whether this [c]ourt thinks that it can improve upon the statutory scheme that Congress enacted into law.” Touche Ross & Co. v. Redington, 442 U.S. 560, 578 (1979). The exclusivity provision does not appear to create such an implied cause of action. In cases where a court implies a cause of action, “the statute in question at least prohibit[s] certain conduct or create[s] federal rights in favor of private parties.” Id. at 569. This “exclusivity provision,” however, does not proscribe conduct as unlawful or confer rights on private parties. Moreover, the structure of Title III — the statute in which the exclusivity provision is found — suggests that Congress did not intend to create a private cause of action. Title III expressly states that the “remedies and sanctions described in this chapter . . . are the only judicial remedies and sanctions for nonconstitutional violations of [Title III].” 18 U.S.C. § 2518(10)(c). Thus, Title III explicitly lists the only available remedies and means of statutory relief. Because it is unreasonable to assume that Congress implicitly (i.e., silently) intended to create a third avenue of statutory relief with the exclusivity provision (in addition to the express causes of action contained in Title III and FISA themselves), the provision does not provide any basis for a cause of action. When considering statutory claims, “the inquiry as to standing must begin with a determination of whether the statute in question authorizes review at the behest of the plaintiff.” Sierra Club, 405 U.S. at 732. The plaintiffs asserted three statutory bases — the APA, Title III, and FISA — and none of these three statutes, individually or collectively, provides an express or implied cause of action that “authorizes review” of the plaintiffs claims. See id. Therefore, the plaintiffs cannot establish standing to litigate their statutory claims, and further explanation is unnecessary. The plaintiffs have, however, raised certain other arguments that warrant mention.