Opinion ID: 167828
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Federal Court and Tribal Court Proceedings

Text: 16 On April 14, 1998, the Burrells filed an action in the United States District Court for the District of New Mexico, Burrell v. Armijo, et al., CIV 98-0438 JC/WWD, alleging civil rights claims under 42 U.S.C. §§ 1981, 1983, and 1985, as well as a separate count based on respondeat superior, against the Pueblo and the individual tribal officials. App. at 21, 226-45. The district court dismissed that action without prejudice because of the Burrells' failure to exhaust tribal court remedies, following the Supreme Court's decisions in National Farmers Union Insurance Companies v. Crow Tribe, 471 U.S. 845, 105 S.Ct. 2447, 85 L.Ed.2d 818 (1985) and Iowa Mutual Insurance Company v. LaPlante, 480 U.S. 9, 107 S.Ct. 971, 94 L.Ed.2d 10 (1987). Id. at 21, 246-52. In particular, the district court rejected the Burrells' contentions that the exhaustion rule did not apply because the tribal court lacked jurisdiction over their BIA lease and civil rights claims. Id. at 250. The district court found that the Burrells' complaint could not be construed to claim a remedy under the provisions of the BIA lease, and that the Burrells failed to cite any express jurisdictional prohibitions which prevent tribal courts from hearing their civil rights claims. Id. The Burrells did not appeal that decision. 17 On October 29, 1998, the Burrells refiled their lawsuit in the Santa Ana Tribal Court (hereinafter tribal court). 3 In that action, the Pueblo and the individual tribal officials filed a motion to dismiss on the grounds of tribal sovereign immunity and failure to state a claim. Meanwhile, the Burrells filed several motions, including motions to compel discovery, a motion for an evidentiary hearing, and a motion for a temporary restraining order and/or a preliminary injunction to prevent tribal officials from harassing tribal members who provided assistance to the Burrells. Tribal Judge Floyd J. Kezele held two evidentiary hearings on all pending matters on February 29, 2000, and March 21, 2000. App. at 23. By May 2002, Judge Kezele had not issued any decisions on the pending motions. 18 On May 14, 2002, the Burrells filed the present action in the United States District Court for the District of New Mexico. 4 The complaint alleged that exhaustion of tribal court remedies should not be required because Judge Kezele denied the Burrells due process of law by failing to make any rulings on the pending motions for almost four years. App. at 22-23. The complaint also asserted that Judge Kezele's conduct exhibited extreme bias in favor of the Pueblo of Santa Ana and [the] tribal officials who paid his salary. Id. 19 The Pueblo and the individual tribal officials subsequently filed a motion to dismiss pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(1) and (b)(6). In this motion, they asserted that the Burrells' complaint should be dismissed for failure to state a claim and for failure to exhaust tribal court remedies, and that the action against the Pueblo was barred by tribal sovereign immunity. App. at 29, 57. The district court granted the motion on the exhaustion of remedies ground. Id. at 158-65. The district court stated that at some point a delay in tribal court proceedings might be sufficient to invoke an exception to the exhaustion requirement, but given the appointment of a new tribal judge to the Burrells' case, the district court concluded that the tribal court remained an available forum for the Burrells to exhaust their remedies. Id. at 163-64. Thus, the district court stayed the case for six months to provide the tribal court an opportunity to address the Burrells' claims. Id. at 164. The district court declined to address tribal sovereign immunity until the issue of exhaustion had been resolved. Id. 20 Within that six month period, Tribal Court Judge Angela Luhan issued an Order Granting Defendant's [sic] Motion to Dismiss on Grounds of Sovereign Immunity. App. at 168. The order stated in its entirety: 21 THIS MATTER comes before the Court pursuant to Defendant's [sic] Motion to Dismiss [o]n Grounds of Sovereign Immunity. Having reviewed the entire file in this matter, submissions of the parties, applicable law, and being otherwise fully advised on the issues, THE COURT FINDS that Santa Ana Tribal Court has Jurisdiction to hear this matter, and Defendant's [sic] motion is well taken and granted, and there is no need for any further hearings in this matter. 22 IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that Defendant's [sic] Motion to Dismiss is hereby GRANTED on the grounds that Plaintiff's [sic] claims are barred by the Sovereign Immunity of Defendant, Pueblo of Santa Ana, from suit. 23 Id. Judge Luhan did not issue a ruling on any other motions. 5 24 After the Pueblo and the individual tribal officials notified the district court of the tribal court's decision, the Burrells filed a motion asking the district court to declare the tribal court's decision null and void. App. at 169, 188. The district court denied the motion, refusing to review the Burrells' arguments that the tribal court failed to order the parties to arbitration and that the tribal court's sovereign immunity ruling was contrary to Supreme Court precedent. Id. at 194-201. The district court stated that it could only review the tribal court's determination regarding its jurisdiction to adjudicate the Burrells' claims, but that nothing in the Burrells' motion could be construed as such a request. Yet, the district court entertained the Burrells' argument to declare the tribal court's decision void based on a lack of due process. Id. at 197. Although the district court initially determined that its readjudication of issues previously resolved by a tribal court was not supported by Supreme Court precedent, it alternatively reached the merits of the Burrells' due process argument and found that the tribal court's proceedings provided adequate due process. Id. at 198. The district court concluded its ruling by requesting the parties to file status briefs addressing, at a minimum, the following issues: whether the stay should be lifted; whether the stay should be extended pending further exhaustion; and whether the Burrells' claims should be dismissed. Id. at 193-94, 201. 25 In the status briefs filed, the parties agreed that the Burrells had fully exhausted their tribal court remedies because it appeared that no appellate review was available. App. at 204, 220-21. The Pueblo and the individual tribal officials also maintained in their status briefs that the district court should lift the stay and dismiss the Burrells' complaint with prejudice under res judicata principles, arguing that the tribal court fully adjudicated the Burrells' claims. Id. at 203-14. 26 The district court subsequently lifted the stay because the parties did not dispute that the Burrells exhausted their tribal court remedies. App. at 398. The district court also construed the Pueblo and the individual tribal officials' status brief as a second motion to dismiss raising res judicata as a new ground for dismissal, and provided the Burrells an opportunity to respond. Id. at 400. The Burrells, however, did not file a response. 27 On August 29, 2003, the district court issued a decision on the unopposed second motion to dismiss. App. at 402-406. The district court noted that under Fed. R.Civ.P. 41(b) and Tenth Circuit precedent, a dismissal for lack of jurisdiction (such as sovereign immunity) did not operate as a final adjudication on the merits under res judicata principles. Id. at 404. Nevertheless, the district court stated that under the doctrine of collateral estoppel, a dismissal for lack of jurisdiction precluded relitigation of the jurisdictional issues necessarily decided on the jurisdictional question. Id. at 405 (citing Matosantos Commercial Corp. v. Applebee's Int'l, Inc., 245 F.3d 1203, 1209-10 (10th Cir.2001); Stewart Sec. Corp. v. Guar. Trust Co., 597 F.2d 240, 241 (10th Cir.1979)). 28 Applying this law, the district court concluded that the tribal court necessarily determined that the Defendants were entitled to sovereign immunity with regard to all claims and that immunity had not been waived. App. at 405. As a result, the district court held that the tribal court's decision was entitled to preclusive effect. Id. The district court noted, as it did previously in the case, that it possessed the authority to consider whether the tribal court had jurisdiction to decide the Burrells' claims. The district court then commented: 29 Plaintiffs have never made an intelligible argument challenging the jurisdiction of the Santa Ana Tribal Court over their various claims. Plaintiffs . . . [previously argued] that the tribal court lacked jurisdiction over the BIA lease because of an alleged arbitration clause within the lease and lacked jurisdiction over all Plaintiffs' claims because tribal courts are generally unfair. These arguments do not relate to the jurisdictional authority of the Santa Ana Tribal Court over Plaintiffs' causes of action. Plaintiffs made no further attempt to challenge the jurisdiction of the tribal court. Therefore, this Court has never addressed the jurisdiction of the Santa Ana Tribal Court as it relates to Plaintiffs' claims. 30 Id. at 405-06.