Opinion ID: 147852
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Other adequate means of relief and uncorrectable damage

Text: Metro lumps the next two mandamus factors together, asserting that it has no other adequate means of relief beyond seeking mandamus and that it will be subjected to uncorrectable damage if we fail to grant mandamus. Specifically, Metro contends that a second trial will sap its resources and that it would not be able to appeal the grant of a new trial once a second trial has been concluded. With regard to its resources argument, Metro explains that eight of the named plaintiffs continue to work for it, and that [e]very fact witness was an employee of Metro. It thus faces the loss of hundreds of work hours should the case be retried. In addition, Metro notes that it has incurred substantial expert witness fees and would anticipate to incur significantly more expert fees should a retrial occur. But the bulk of those fees were incurred as a result of its expert witness preparing a statistical analysis of the demographics and promotions within Metro's Water Department, and a retrial would simply require the expert to testify, once again, about the results of his analysis. The expert witness fees that Metro would incur upon a retrial should therefore be far smaller than those it has already incurred. As to the length and expense of a new trial, this court has recognized that mandamus relief could be appropriate where a lengthy trial is contemplated and numerous witnesses have to be subpoenaed from distant parts of the country. See Smoot v. Fox, 340 F.2d 301, 303 (6th Cir.1964) (granting a petition for mandamus where the district court refused to grant a plaintiff's motion to dismiss his own case with prejudice, and noting the costs of the unnecessary trial that would otherwise ensue). But here the Plaintiffs have requested a retrial on fewer than all of the claims raised at the original trial, which should lead to a shorter proceeding. And there has been no suggestion that either the Plaintiffs' or Metro's witnesses have to travel long distances to be present at the retrial. Indeed, most of them appear to be municipal employees who live nearby. Finally, Metro may be able to recoup at least some of its expenses should it prevail on retrial via a bill of costs. See 28 U.S.C. §§ 1920, 1921. The uncorrectable-damages factor therefore does not weigh heavily in support of Metro's mandamus claim. Metro also expresses concern that if the case is retried and it loses, it will be unable to contest the order granting the motion for a new trial. But this concern is unwarranted. The Supreme Court has held that a litigant who wins at trial but is subject to an order granting a new trial is free to seek review of the propriety of such an order on direct appeal after a final judgment has been entered. Consequently, it cannot be said that the litigant `has no other adequate means to seek the relief he desires.' Allied Chem. Corp. v. Daiflon, Inc., 449 U.S. 33, 36, 101 S.Ct. 188, 66 L.Ed.2d 193 (1980) (summarily reversing a court of appeals' decision to grant mandamus to a party contesting the grant of a new trial); see also Duncan v. Duncan, 377 F.2d 49, 52 (6th Cir.1967) (Although an order granting a new trial is generally not appealable, it is clear that such orders are reviewable on appeal from the final judgment in the second trial.); 25 Federal Procedure, Lawyers Edition § 58:44 (Although the order granting a new trial is not appealable, it is reviewable and may be assigned as error on appeal from a final judgment entered in the new trial, and the appellate court may reinstate the judgment reached at the earlier trial.). Because Metro's concerns about its inability to obtain appellate review of the granting of a new trial are without foundation, the no-other-adequate-means-of-relief factor does not favor mandamus.