Opinion ID: 757564
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: anti-injunction act and younger abstention doctrine

Text: 55 Wellington also argues that the Anti-Injunction Act and the Younger abstention doctrine provide grounds to reverse the District Court's grant of an injunction. The AntiInjunction Act, 29 U.S.C. § 2283, prevents a federal court from staying proceedings in a pending state court case. 5 The District Court's injunction barring Wellington from seeking enforcement of the Massachusetts injunction seems to facially violate this act. See Atlantic Coast Line R.R. Co. v. Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, 398 U.S. 281, 90 S.Ct. 1739, 26 L.Ed.2d 234 (1970). Instead of arguing that one of the Anti-Injunction Act's statutory exceptions applies, Russell focuses on showing the Anti-Injunction Act does not affect it because of the judicially-created stranger to the litigation doctrine. See County of Imperial, California v. Munoz, 449 U.S. 54, 101 S.Ct. 289, 66 L.Ed.2d 258 (1980). We note some difficulty in the argument that Russell was a stranger to the Massachusetts proceeding because it submitted three affidavits, two days of testimony, and an amicus brief in that case. Because we have an adequate means for deciding this case without reaching this issue, we defer ruling on it. 56 The Younger abstention doctrine 6 creates an additional set of circumstances in which a federal court is prohibited from enjoining an on-going state action. This occurs when (1) there is an on-going state judicial proceeding, (2) the state proceeding implicates an important state interest, and (3) the state proceeding provides an adequate opportunity to raise the constitutional issue. FOCUS v. Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas, 75 F.3d 834, 843 (3d Cir.1996). The pending appeal in Massachusetts state court clearly satisfies the first requirement of the Younger doctrine. Massachusetts' interest in preventing the judgments of its courts from being nullified, in part, by a federal court order may arguably fulfill the second requirements. 7 The third element may be satisfied by showing that Russell's relationship with Schneider was so intertwined that the Massachusetts proceeding gave Russell the opportunity to raise its federal claims. See New Jersey-Philadelphia Presbytery of the Bible Presbyterian Church v. New Jersey State Board of Higher Educ., 654 F.2d 868, 878 (3d Cir.1981). Because these contested issues are not necessary for a resolution of this case, we again decline to rule on them.