Opinion ID: 783388
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Development of Rooker-Feldman

Text: 44 We have never in this circuit applied the Rooker-Feldman doctrine so broadly as to conflict with either the rule permitting parallel state and federal litigation or the rule of § 1738 requiring federal courts to follow state preclusion rules. In seven cases in this circuit, we have held that Rooker-Feldman barred forbidden de facto appeals from state court decisions. To the extent there is a lead case, it is Worldwide Church of God v. McNair, 805 F.2d 888 (9th Cir.1986), in which disappointed state court defendants brought suit in federal district court. They named as a federal defendant the state superior court, alleged as a legal wrong that the state court jury verdict was unconstitutional, and sought an injunction against the enforcement of the state court judgment based on the verdict. We held that the federal suit was barred by Rooker-Feldman. To the extent the federal plaintiffs sought to bring a direct challenge to the correctness of the decision of the state court, this was a forbidden de facto appeal. To the extent they sought in the same suit to bring a more general constitutional challenge, that challenge was inextricably intertwined with (to the degree that it could be separated at all from) the forbidden direct appeal. Id. at 892-93. 45 In Bianchi v. Rylaarsdam, 334 F.3d 895 (9th Cir.2003), Bianchi had lost an appeal in front of a three-judge panel of the California Court of Appeal. He then brought a motion in that court alleging that his federal and state constitutional rights to due process had been violated because a justice whom Bianchi had disqualified when he was a judge on the California Superior Court, and who had subsequently been elevated to the Court of Appeal, sat on the appellate panel. The Court of Appeal denied the motion, and the California Supreme Court denied a Writ of Mandate asserting the same constitutional claims. Id. at 897. Bianchi then filed suit in federal district court against the three appellate justices who had decided his appeal claiming that his federal due process right had been violated and seeking to have the appellate court's opinion vacated and the case reassigned to a different panel. We held that the district court lacked jurisdiction because Bianchi essentially asked the federal court to review the `state court's denial in a judicial proceeding' of his constitutional claim. Id. at 898 (quoting Feldman, 460 U.S. at 483 n. 16, 103 S.Ct. 1303). 46 In Olson Farms v. Barbosa, 134 F.3d 933 (9th Cir.1998), the California Agricultural Labor Relations Board (ALRB) had held that Olson Farms (Olson) was subject to its jurisdiction, and then held that Olson had failed to bargain in good faith with its employees. Olson sought review of that decision in the California Supreme Court, which denied review. In a separate case, the ALRB made the same jurisdictional determination for the same period. Olson appealed that decision to the California Court of Appeal, which affirmed. Olson filed suit in federal district court against the members of the ALRB, asserting as a legal wrong the allegedly incorrect jurisdictional determinations of the ALRB and the state courts. Relying on Worldwide Church of God, we held that Olson sought to have the district court... review the past jurisdictional decisions of the ALRB and the state courts, and that this was a forbidden de facto direct appeal. Id. at 936. 47 In Partington v. Gedan, 961 F.2d 852 (9th Cir.1992), the Hawaii Supreme Court found that Partington had violated a state court rule and assessed a $50 fine, payable to the discretionary fund of the dean of the Hawaii Law School. Partington then brought suit in federal district court. He named as defendants the justices of the state supreme court, alleged that the Hawaii Supreme Court justices and the dean of the law school had violated several of his constitutional rights by levying and collecting the fine, and sought a return of the $50. Id. at 857. Relying on Feldman, we wrote that Partington asked the district court to review a specific state court decision interpreting a state court rule, and held that the district court had no subject matter jurisdiction under Rooker-Feldman. Id. at 865. 48 In Allah v. Superior Court, 871 F.2d 887 (9th Cir.1989), the Los Angeles Superior Court had dismissed Allah's suit for failure to comply with a discovery order. Allah then brought a pro se suit in federal district court, alleging that the dismissal by the state court violated his constitutional rights. We held that this was a forbidden de facto appeal under Rooker-Feldman : To the extent that Allah requested the district court to conduct a direct review of the state court's judgment and to scrutinize the state court's application of various rules and procedures pertaining to his case, the district court lacked subject matter jurisdiction over his complaint. Id. at 891. 49 In MacKay v. Pfeil, 827 F.2d 540 (9th Cir.1987), the Alaska Superior Court had entered judgment against MacKay for his deceased ex-wife's expenses in enforcing a custody decree. The state court later entered a default judgment against MacKay in an action to enforce the earlier judgment. MacKay appealed neither judgment within the state court system, but instead filed suit in federal district court. He alleged that the state court had erred in finding that it had personal jurisdiction over him and in holding that the damage award was consistent with the consent decree. He sought from the district court `a declaration that the Purported Judgment is void,' and `orders restraining and enjoining the Defendants from seeking to enforce the Purported Judgment.' Id. at 543 (internal quotation marks omitted). We held the federal suit barred under Rooker-Feldman. 50 Finally, in Tofano v. Supreme Court of Nevada, 718 F.2d 313 (9th Cir.1983), the Nevada Supreme Court had denied Tofano admission to the state bar because of his low score on the Nevada Bar Examination. Tofano filed suit against the state supreme court in federal district court, specifically challenging the decision in his own individual case and generally challenging the procedures used to grade the examination. We held that Tofano's challenge to the denial of admission by the court in his individual case was barred as a forbidden de facto direct appeal under Feldman. However, we upheld the district court's jurisdiction over the general challenge to the grading procedures, holding that this challenge did not require review of [the] final state court judgment in[his] particular case. Id. at 314 (quoting Feldman, 460 U.S. at 486, 103 S.Ct. 1303). 51 It is commonplace for the lower federal courts to complain that the Rooker-Feldman doctrine is difficult to apply. See, e.g., Brokaw v. Weaver, 305 F.3d 660, 664-65 (7th Cir.2002) (complaining of the difficulty); Gottfried v. Med. Planning Servs., Inc., 142 F.3d 326, 330 (6th Cir.1998) ( Rooker-Feldman stands for the simple (yet nonetheless confusing) proposition that lower federal courts do not have jurisdiction to review a case litigated and decided in state court....); Bates v. Jones, 131 F.3d 843, 863 (9th Cir.1997) (It is difficult to articulate a general rule for identifying the circumstances under which the applicability of Rooker-Feldman and of res judicata are not essentially coextensive. This may be what inspired a leading commentator in the field of Civil Procedure to describe the Rooker-Feldman doctrine as `some-what peculiar.'); Harris v. N.Y. State Dep't of Health, 202 F.Supp.2d 143, 159 n. 2 (S.D.N.Y.2002) ([C]onfusion continues in the federal courts on the relation between preclusion and the Rooker-Feldman doctrine. (internal quotation marks omitted)); Zealy v. City of Waukesha, 153 F.Supp.2d 970, 980 (E.D.Wis. 2001) ([T]he distinction between Rooker-Feldman and claim preclusion is difficult to draw.). 52 But the Supreme Court's decisions in Rooker and Feldman, and our seven decisions applying the Rooker-Feldman doctrine to deny jurisdiction, fall into a relatively clear pattern: It is a forbidden de facto appeal under Rooker-Feldman when the plaintiff in federal district court complains of a legal wrong allegedly committed by the state court, and seeks relief from the judgment of that court. There are two kinds of cases in which such a forbidden de facto appeal might be brought. 53 First, the federal plaintiff may complain of harm caused by a state court judgment that directly withholds a benefit from (or imposes a detriment on) the federal plaintiff, based on an allegedly erroneous ruling by that court. This was the case in Feldman, where the local court had refused to grant to the federal plaintiffs a waiver of the local bar admission rule. This was also the case in Partington, where the Hawaii Supreme Court had assessed a fine against the federal plaintiff, and in Tofano, where the Nevada Supreme Court had refused to admit the federal plaintiff to the state bar. 54 Second, the federal plaintiff may complain of a legal injury caused by a state court judgment, based on an allegedly erroneous legal ruling, in a case in which the federal plaintiff was one of the litigants. This was the case in Rooker, where the state court had already decided a case between two sets of private litigants. The disappointed state court litigants then brought suit in federal court asserting as their legal injury the state court judgment based on an alleged legal error committed by that court. This was also the case in Worldwide Church of God, where the federal plaintiff complained of legal injury caused by a judgment based on an allegedly unconstitutional jury verdict; in Bianchi where the federal plaintiff complained of legal injury caused by the state Court of Appeal judgment refusing to set aside the earlier judgment despite the failure of an appellate justice to recuse himself; in Olson Farms, where the federal plaintiff complained of legal injury caused by state court decisions based on an allegedly incorrect holding that the ALRB had jurisdiction over Olson; in Allah, where the federal plaintiff complained of legal injury caused by the state court judgment allegedly wrongly dismissing his case; and in MacKay, where the federal plaintiff complained of legal injury caused by the state court judgment based on its allegedly incorrect holdings that it had personal jurisdiction over him and that his actions violated the consent decree. 55 On the other hand, where the federal plaintiff does not complain of a legal injury caused by a state court judgment, but rather of a legal injury caused by an adverse party, Rooker-Feldman does not bar jurisdiction. If the federal plaintiff and the adverse party are simultaneously litigating the same or a similar dispute in state court, the federal suit may proceed under the long-standing rule permitting parallel state and federal litigation. See, e.g., Atl. Coast Line, 398 U.S. at 295, 90 S.Ct. 1739 ([T]he state and federal courts had concurrent jurisdiction in this case, and the parties could simultaneously pursu[e] claims in both courts.). Or if the federal plaintiff and the adverse party have already litigated the state court suit to judgment, the federal plaintiff may be precluded from relitigating that dispute under the interjurisdictional preclusion rule of 28 U.S.C. § 1738. See, e.g., Kremer, 456 U.S. at 466, 102 S.Ct. 1883 (Section 1738 requires federal courts to give the same preclusive effect to state court judgments that those judgments would be given in the courts of the State from which the judgments emerged.). In neither situation does Rooker-Feldman bar subject matter jurisdiction in federal district court, for in neither situation is the federal plaintiff complaining of legal injury caused by a state court judgment because of a legal error committed by the state court. Rather, in both situations, the plaintiff is complaining of legal injury caused by the adverse party. 56 We believe that the following general formulation describes the distinctive role of the Rooker-Feldman doctrine in our federal system: If a federal plaintiff asserts as a legal wrong an allegedly erroneous decision by a state court, and seeks relief from a state court judgment based on that decision, Rooker-Feldman bars subject matter jurisdiction in federal district court. If, on the other hand, a federal plaintiff asserts as a legal wrong an allegedly illegal act or omission by an adverse party, Rooker-Feldman does not bar jurisdiction. If there is simultaneously pending federal and state court litigation between the two parties dealing with the same or related issues, the federal district court in some circumstances may abstain or stay proceedings; or if there has been state court litigation that has already gone to judgment, the federal suit may be claim-precluded under § 1738. But in neither of these circumstances does Rooker-Feldman bar jurisdiction. This formulation of the Rooker-Feldman doctrine is consistent with the two cases themselves; with all our cases holding that Rooker-Feldman bars jurisdiction; with the two long-established rules permitting simultaneous state and federal litigation, and requiring federal courts to apply the preclusion rules of the states under § 1738; and with many (though not all) of the formulations of the Rooker-Feldman doctrine in other circuits. 57 Of the formulations in the other circuits, we find most notable (and most useful) the similar formulation of the Seventh Circuit, first articulated at some length by Judge Easterbrook in GASH Associates v. Village of Rosemont, 995 F.2d 726, 728-29 (7th Cir.1993): 58 [B]oth [ Rooker-Feldman and preclusion] define the respect one court owes to an earlier judgment. But the two are not coextensive. Preclusion in federal litigation following a judgment in state court depends on the Full Faith and Credit Statute, 28 U.S.C. § 1738, which requires the federal court to give the judgment the same effect as the rendering state would.... The Rooker-Feldman doctrine, by contrast, has nothing to do with § 1738. It rests on the principle that district courts have only original jurisdiction.... The Rooker-Feldman doctrine asks: is the federal plaintiff seeking to set aside a state judgment, or does he present some independent claim, albeit one that denies a legal conclusion that a state court has reached in a case to which he was a party? If the former, then the district court lacks jurisdiction; if the latter, then there is jurisdiction and state law determines whether the defendant prevails under principles of preclusion. 59 . . . . 60 ... To put this differently, the injury of which GASH complains was caused by the judgment, just as in Rooker, Feldman, and Ritter [ v. Ross, 992 F.2d 750 (7th Cir.1993)]. GASH did not suffer an injury out of court and then fail to get relief from state court; its injury came from the [state court] judgment.... 61 The GASH formulation has been repeated, with slight variations, many times in the Seventh Circuit. See, e.g., Garry v. Geils, 82 F.3d 1362, 1366-67 (7th Cir.1996) ([T]he distinction between a federal claim alleging injury caused by a state court judgment (necessarily raising the Rooker-Feldman doctrine) and a federal claim alleging a prior injury that a state court failed to remedy (raising a potential res judicata problem but not a Rooker-Feldman problem) has been recognized in this circuit at least since our decision in GASH.  (emphasis in original)); Jensen v. Foley, 295 F.3d 745, 747-48 (7th Cir.2002) (The Rooker-Feldman doctrine, generally speaking, bars a plaintiff from bringing a § 1983 suit to remedy an injury inflicted by the state court's decision.... Preclusion, on the other hand, applies when a federal plaintiff complains of an injury that was not caused by the state court, but which the state court has previously failed to rectify. (emphasis in original)); see also Lewis v. Anderson, 308 F.3d 768, 772 (7th Cir.2002) (same); Durgins v. City of E. St. Louis, 272 F.3d 841, 844 (7th Cir.2001) (same); Rizzo v. Sheahan, 266 F.3d 705, 714 (7th Cir.2001) (same); Centres, Inc. v. Town of Brookfield, 148 F.3d 699, 702 (7th Cir.1998) (same); Young v. Murphy, 90 F.3d 1225, 1231 (7th Cir.1996) (same).