Opinion ID: 217719
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The Council Resolved Disputed Issue of Fact in an Adversarial Proceeding

Text: Sierra Club also argues that the Council's 2005 Order does not preclude the issue of whether Two Elk commenced construction because the Council never resolved disputed issues of fact in an adversarial proceeding as required by Wyoming law. See Slavens, 854 P.2d at 685. Sierra Club's contentions are not persuasive. As discussed above, the Council's 2005 Order expressly found and concluded that Two Elk commenced construction as required by [the Permit]; thus, the Council resolved the disputed issue as to whether Two Elk had complied with the commence construction requirement of the Permit. Aplt.App. at 88. In addition, the proceeding that ended in the Council's 2005 Order was an adversarial proceeding, as it began when Two Elk appealed DEQ's decision that Two Elk's CT-1352A permit had terminated. Id. at 87. Sierra Club's argument that the Council's 2005 Order should not be given preclusive effect because the Council did not make any findings of fact is without merit. Sierra Club cites Morgan v. City of Rawlins, 792 F.2d 975, 980 (10th Cir.1986), where this court, applying Wyoming law, refused to apply preclusive effect to a state court decision [a]bsent any findings of fact or conclusions of law in the [prior state court proceeding]. In Morgan, however, the state court dismissed the plaintiff's prior suit with no written order. . . to elucidate the basis for the dismissal and no other findings to provide any shape or direction to this court's inquiry. Id. at 977. Without any evidence of the state court proceeding on the record, we were unable to determine whether the substantive issues of the plaintiff's § 1983 suit were litigated in the prior proceeding. Id. at 979. This differs from the current case, where the Council explained that progress had been made on a foundation for the main stack and a binding contract for a boiler existed, and decided the exact issue that Sierra Club asks us to decide, namely, whether Two Elk commenced construction on the Power Plant.