Opinion ID: 435109
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Discussion of Applicable Legal Considerations.

Text: 14 It is generally true that appeals from district courts are pursuant to 28 U.S.C. Sec. 1291. This court recently held In the Matter of Glover, Inc., 697 F.2d 907 (10th Cir.1983) (per curiam), that transition period jurisdiction in bankruptcy proceedings over appeals from the district courts to the courts of appeal derives exclusively from Section 1291. This court further stated that Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 6, which explicitly relies on Section 24 of the repealed Bankruptcy Act of 1898, was superseded by the 1978 Reform Act's jurisdictional provision which is codified in 28 U.S.C. Sec. 1293 and permits an appeal from final orders only. Id. at 908. Moreover, this court held that while Section 1293 does not become technically effective until April 1, 1984, Section 405(c) of the 1978 Reform Act provides interim jurisdiction until that effective date. There recently has been an extension of this interim jurisdiction by order of the Congress. However, in Matter of Glover, supra, we held that Section 405(c) was intended only to address appeals from bankruptcy courts and did not confer jurisdiction in this court over appeals from district courts. Id. at 909. 15 Therefore, in order to find that this court possesses jurisdiction to hear Dalton's appeals, it would have to first be found that the Colorado District Court's orders satisfy the collateral order exception to Section 1291 finality, established in Cohen, supra. Following review of the two orders and the applicable law it is clear that neither order, nor both orders viewed together, satisfies the collateral order exception. Consequently, they are interlocutory and not appealable at this time. 16 Section 1291 gives this court jurisdiction over final decisions of the district courts. To be final and appealable, the district court's judgment must end the litigation and leave nothing to be done except execute the judgment. Catlin v. United States, 324 U.S. 229, 233, 65 S.Ct. 631, 633, 89 L.Ed. 911; Matter of Glover, supra, at 909. 17 It is plain that the withdrawal of reference and transfer of venue orders merely involve the selection or designation of the forum in which final decisions will be ultimately reached. They do not finally end the litigation. It has been held that an order of reference by the district court to an adjunct or a magistrate is not a final judgment and is, therefore, not reviewable on appeal. Loral Corporation v. McDonnell Douglas Corporation, 558 F.2d 1130 (2d Cir.1977). Also well-established is that an order transferring venue of an action, even if the transfer is to a district in another circuit, is an interlocutory order and unappealable, except by certification under 28 U.S.C. Sec. 1292(b). 3 E.g., Codex Corp. v. Milgo Electronic Corp., 553 F.2d 735 (1st Cir.1977); American Fidelity Fire Insurance Company v. United States District Court for Northern District of California, 538 F.2d 1371 (9th Cir.1976); D'Ippolito v. American Oil Company, 401 F.2d 764 (2d Cir.1968); see 9 J. Moore, B. Ward, and J. Lucas, Moore's Federal Practice Sec. 110.13 (1983-84 Supp. 2d ed. 1982). It is undisputed that the district court below has not issued a written statement to this court, pursuant to Section 1292(b), that immediate review of the two interlocutory orders here mentioned is advisable. Therefore, the withdrawal of reference and transfer of venue orders are technically unappealable; in short, they are interlocutory orders. 18 The federal appellate courts have consistently refused to rule that interlocutory venue transfer orders constitute appealable orders as a part of the Cohen collateral order exception. 4 The only exception has been narrowly construed by the courts to require that in order to come within the narrow class of decisions excepted from the final judgment rule, the order must first conclusively determine the disputed question; second, resolve an important issue completely separate or collateral from the merits of the action, and third, be effectively non-reviewable on appeal from a final judgment. See Coopers & Lybrand v. Livesay, 437 U.S. 463, 98 S.Ct. 2454, 57 L.Ed. 351 (1978); Matter of Glover, supra, at 910. Dalton still maintains that his inability to secure review of the withdrawal of reference and transfer of venue orders in the transferee circuit results in an irretrievable loss of a collateral right and satisfies the requirements of Cohen. 19 The argument of Dalton does not persuade. The Second Circuit a long time ago held that the premise that Cohen applies to every order that cannot later be reviewed on appeal is false. D'Ippolito v. American Oil Company, 401 F.2d 764, 765 (2d Cir.1968). The Second Circuit reiterated this view in recent times. It stated that preliminary orders regarding forum are not appealable in the transferor circuit under the collateral order exception, even though postponing review forces the would-be appellant to litigate in the forum he seeks to avoid, and creates the risk that the entire proceeding will be rendered nugatory. U.S. Tour Operators Association v. Trans World Airlines, 556 F.2d 126, 129 (2d Cir.1977). This circuit has long adhered to the same view, as evidenced by use of mandamus as the appropriate remedy to test the validity of a transfer order and in light of the rule that mandamus will not be considered where an appeal would lie. See Cessna Aircraft Company v. Brown, 348 F.2d 689 (10th Cir.1965); Solomon v. Bruchhausen, 305 F.2d 941 (2d Cir.1962), cert. denied, 371 U.S. 951, 83 S.Ct. 506, 9 L.Ed.2d 499 (1963). Thus, if this court has jurisdiction to review the two orders which have been specified here of the Colorado District Court that jurisdiction lies exclusively in the issuance of an extraordinary writ. The appropriateness of the issuance of such writ in these facts must be now considered.