Opinion ID: 508850
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Development of Laches in Military Cases

Text: 14 The doctrine of laches emerged in an era when equity courts were not bound by statutes of limitations. 2 J. Pomeroy, Equity Jurisprudence Secs. 418-19 (5th ed. 1941). It was premised on the maxim vigilantibus non dormientibus aequitas subvenit, equity aids the vigilant not those who slumber on their rights:The doctrine of laches is based upon grounds of public policy, which require for the peace of society the discouragement of stale demands. And where the difficulty of doing entire justice by reason of the death of the principal witness or witnesses, or from the original transactions having become obscured by time, is attributable to gross negligence or deliberate delay, a court of equity will not aid a party whose application is thus destitute of conscience, good faith and reasonable diligence. 15 Mackall v. Casilear, 137 U.S. 556, 566, 11 S.Ct. 178, 181, 34 L.Ed. 776 (1890); see also Hayward v. National Bank, 96 U.S. (6 Otto) 611, 617, 24 L.Ed. 855 (1878). 16 Because laches is an equitable defense, it has traditionally been unavailable in actions at law brought within the applicable statute of limitations. See, e.g., Clark v. Amoco Prod. Co., 794 F.2d 967, 971 (5th Cir.1986). Based on the twin goals of limiting monetary consequences to the government and compelling the speedy resolutions of disputes, however, it has been applied to claims for back pay by government personnel brought even before the limitations period has run, notwithstanding that these are actions at law, not equity. See Henry v. United States, 153 F.Supp. 285, 139 Ct.Cl. 362, 366-70 (1957). 17 The Supreme Court has never spoken to laches in the context of the dismissal of a military officer. It did, however, consider the doctrine appertaining to the dismissal of a civilian government employee in Arant v. Lane, 249 U.S. 367, 371, 39 S.Ct. 293, 294, 63 L.Ed. 650 (1919). There, an employee wrongfully discharged sought a writ of mandamus restoring him to his position. The Court said that mandamus was generally regarded as not embraced within statutes of limitation applicable to ordinary actions, but as subject to the equitable doctrine of laches. Id. So a public official must promptly take action challenging his discharge to the end that if his contention be justified the Government service may be disturbed as little as possible and that two salaries shall not be paid for a single service. Id. at 372, 39 S.Ct. at 294. Having waited more than twenty months to file his claim, during which another was appointed to the position, the Court held Arant's petition for mandamus barred by laches. 18 Two years later, the Court held the claims of two customs inspectors for the pay of their former offices because of improper discharge barred by their delay in filing suit. Nicholas v. United States, 257 U.S. 71, 42 S.Ct. 7, 66 L.Ed. 133 (1921); Norris v. United States, 257 U.S. 77, 42 S.Ct. 9, 66 L.Ed. 136 (1921); see also Stager v. United States, 57 Ct.Cl. 116 (1922), aff'd mem., 262 U.S. 728, 43 S.Ct. 519, 67 L.Ed. 1203 (1923). Strictly speaking, these cases were not premised on laches, however, but on the theory that the employees had effectively abandoned their offices by their delay in bringing suit. The Court said Nicholas had by his lack of diligence [for three years] evidenced an abandonment of his title to the office, and of his right to recover the emoluments thereof. 257 U.S. at 76-77, 42 S.Ct. at 9. In the companion case, the Court similarly ruled that Norris had lost his right to recover the office because during the period of eleven months after his suspension ... [he] took no steps to vindicate his right to the office, nor to recover the compensation incident to the same. 257 U.S. at 80, 42 S.Ct. at 11. As in Arant, the earlier mandamus and laches case which the Court cited, in Nicholas a replacement had been appointed, and in Norris the position had been abolished, another reason Norris could not prevail. But, again, these were civilians, not military; there are no military laches cases from the Supreme Court. 19 We therefore decline the government's invitation first presented to us at this in banc to hold on the authority of these cases that a military officer who does not diligently pursue his rights abandons title to his office and is barred from judicial relief regardless of prejudice to the government. In the first place, prejudice was apparent in those cases. And we doubt that if ever confronted with this question the Court would have viewed the soldier as equivalent to the civilian worker. For it has said,  'By enlistment the citizen becomes a soldier....  He acquires a new status, with correlative rights and duties; and although he may violate his contract obligations, his status as a soldier is unchanged.'  Bell v. United States, 366 U.S. 393, 402, 81 S.Ct. 1230, 1235, 6 L.Ed.2d 365 (1961) (quoting In re Grimley, 137 U.S. 147, 152, 11 S.Ct. 54, 55 34 L.Ed. 636 (1890)); see also Parker v. Levy, 417 U.S. 733, 743, 94 S.Ct. 2547, 2550-51, 41 L.Ed.2d 439 (1974); Schlesinger v. Councilman, 420 U.S. 738, 757, 95 S.Ct. 1300, 1312-13, 43 L.Ed.2d 591 (1975). Indeed, military officers hold presidential commissions with consent of the Senate, see 10 U.S.C. Sec. 531; these early Supreme Court cases did not contemplate that an officer could abandon his commission by mere delay in reclaiming it. 20 Even in civilian cases, the Supreme Court might have a different view today. Though the Court has not spoken in recent years on the question of laches in civilian employee disputes with the government, it has discussed the requirements in disputes between private employers and employees. Albemarle Paper Co. v. Moody, 422 U.S. 405, 424, 95 S.Ct. 2362, 2374-75, 45 L.Ed.2d 280 (1975), reviewed a claim that Title VII plaintiffs were not entitled to back pay because they had delayed five years in bringing their case. The Court required a showing of specific prejudice before laches barred their claims. 21 The earliest military cases in the Court of Claims, whose precedents are binding on us unless changed in banc, South Corp. v. United States, 690 F.2d 1368, 1370 (Fed.Cir.1982), apparently did not recognize the laches defense. In fact, Todd v. United States, Ct.Cl.Rep. No. 1 (Serial Set 871) (Mar. 6, 1856), recommended the plaintiff be paid for work he did as a Navy purser during the War of 1812. The court first applied laches to the military in the 1920's, but then in only a couple of aberrational cases. See Plunkett v. United States, 58 Ct.Cl. 359, 370 (1923); Chamberlain v. United States, 66 Ct.Cl. 317, 320 (1928). After Chamberlain, the concept of laches in military cases lay dormant for over forty years, although it continued in the civilian context, but with a requirement that prejudice to the government be shown. See, e.g., O'Brien v. United States, 148 Ct.Cl. 1, 4 (1960); Henry, 139 Ct.Cl. at 369. 22 With Cason v. United States, 461 F.2d 784, 788, 198 Ct.Cl. 650 (1972) (Cason I ), the court resurrected laches in military suits. Two things are notable about Cason I, and its sequel Cason v. United States, 471 F.2d 1225, 200 Ct.Cl. 424 (1973) (Cason II ). First, they unreservedly say that in military cases laches cannot be invoked without a showing of prejudice, apart from payments for work not done, resulting from a claimant's delay. In Cason I, the case was dismissed on the basis of laches. But on reconsideration, the court held that laches did not bar the claim because the government had not adequately shown prejudice. According to the court, We suggested certain areas of possible prejudice in our initial opinion in this case, but the defendant has made no attempt to substantiate that it was in fact in any specific manner prejudiced by plaintiff's delay. Cason II, 471 F.2d at 1229. 23 Second, the Cason cases recognized differences between civilian and military service that must be taken account of when applying the laches doctrine. Id.; see 461 F.2d at 789 (Davis, J., dissenting). 24 In the wake of Cason II, however, the laches defense has gradually engulfed the early cases. The government, by far the stronger party, now enjoys a presumption of prejudice when delay is thought to be too long, which military claimants have little ability to rebut. The object of the suits, the remedy of back pay, has become the focus of the prejudice inquiry, and this case, holding the potential receipt of retired pay to constitute prejudice, sets out an element of prejudice likely to exist in virtually every case. We think it is time to revisit the laches doctrine.