Court Opinion

ID: 9915053
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2024-01-04 16:00:49.311072+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:17:01.783933
License: Public Domain

USCA11 Case: 22-13242     Document: 80-1      Date Filed: 01/04/2024   Page: 1 of 8

                                                    [DO NOT PUBLISH]
                                     In the
                United States Court of Appeals
                         For the Eleventh Circuit

                           ____________________

                                  No. 22-13242
                            Non-Argument Calendar
                           ____________________

       USHA JAIN,
       Dr.,
       MANOHAR JAIN,
                                                     Plaintiﬀs-Appellants,
       versus
       DONALD MYERS,
       HEATHER HIGBEE,
       JOHN KEST,
       KEVIN WEISS,
       individually and oﬃcial capacity,
       MR. WERT, et al.,
USCA11 Case: 22-13242      Document: 80-1     Date Filed: 01/04/2024     Page: 2 of 8

       2                      Opinion of the Court                 22-13242

                                                     Defendants-Appellees.

                            ____________________

                  Appeal from the United States District Court
                       for the Middle District of Florida
                   D.C. Docket No. 6:19-cv-01635-CEM-LHP
                           ____________________

       Before JORDAN, LAGOA, and BRASHER, Circuit Judges.
       PER CURIAM:
             Manohar and Usha Jain, proceeding pro se, file this appeal re-
       garding the district court’s orders imposing a pre-filing injunction,
       awarding attorney’s fees as sanctions and denying a motion for re-
       consideration of sanctions, and denying a request for a supersedeas
       bond. The Jains also filed two prior consolidated appeals challeng-
       ing the district court’s order dismissing the Jains’ complaint and
       various post-judgment motions.
              In the instant appeal, the Jains argue that the district court
       abused its discretion in entering the pre-filing injunction because it
       constituted unlawful retaliation, and they were not provided with
       due process. They also argue that the district court abused its dis-
       cretion in awarding attorney’s fees as sanctions and denying their
       motion for reconsideration of the sanctions order because their fil-
       ings were not frivolous or in bad faith, they were not provided due
       process, and there was no causal connection for the attorney’s fees.
       They likewise argue that the district court abused its discretion in
USCA11 Case: 22-13242      Document: 80-1       Date Filed: 01/04/2024      Page: 3 of 8

       22-13242                Opinion of the Court                           3

       denying their motion for a supersedeas bond and stay pending ap-
       peal. The appellees moved to dismiss the appeal for lack of jurisdic-
       tion. We previously issued an order denying appellees’ motion to
       dismiss the appeal of the reconsideration and supersedeas bond or-
       ders because the notice of appeal was timely as to those orders. As
       to the remaining challenged orders, we carried the motion to dis-
       miss with the case.
              We will group the Jains’ arguments into four groups based
       on subject matter. First, we will consider the pre-filing injunction.
       Second, we will address the orders relating to sanctions. Third, we
       will review the orders on the motion for reconsideration. Fourth,
       we will consider the supersedeas bond denial. For the following
       reasons, we dismiss the Jains’ appeal of the pre-filing injunction and
       the sanctions orders because they are duplicative and untimely, re-
       spectively. For the remaining issues, we affirm the district court.
                                          I.

               Federal courts may use their inherent administrative power
       to dismiss duplicative litigation to avoid wasting judicial resources.
       Colo. River Water Conservation Dist. v. United States, 424 U.S. 800,
       817–18 (1976); accord I.A. Durbin, Inc. v. Jefferson Nat’l Bank, 793 F.2d
       1541, 1551 (11th Cir. 1986). A new action is duplicative of a prior
       action in which the parties, issues, and available relief are substan-
       tially the same. I.A. Durbin, Inc., 793 F.2d at 1551. In general, an
       appellant “is not entitled to two appeals” from the same judgment.
       United States v. Arlt, 567 F.2d 1295, 1297 (5th Cir. 1978).
USCA11 Case: 22-13242      Document: 80-1       Date Filed: 01/04/2024      Page: 4 of 8

       4                       Opinion of the Court                   22-13242

              The Jains already challenged the pre-filing injunction in their
       consolidated appeal in cases 20-11908 and 21-11719, and any con-
       sideration of the injunction here would be duplicative. Accord-
       ingly, we grant appellees’ motion to dismiss as to the Jains’ pre-fil-
       ing injunction claim.
                                          II.

               We must examine jurisdiction sua sponte and review our
       own jurisdiction de novo. Wood v. Raffensperger, 981 F.3d 1307, 1313
       (11th Cir. 2020). The timely filing of a notice of appeal in a civil case
       is a jurisdictional requirement, and we cannot entertain an appeal
       that is out of time. Green v. Drug Enf’t Admin., 606 F.3d 1296, 1301
       (11th Cir. 2010). To be timely, a notice of appeal in a civil case must
       be filed no later than 30 days after the challenged order or judg-
       ment is entered on the docket. 28 U.S.C. § 2107(a); Fed. R. App.
       P. 4(a)(1)(A). Every judgment must be set out in a separate docu-
       ment, except orders which dispose of motions in delineated cir-
       cumstances such as orders regarding motions under Rule 59. Fed.
       R. Civ. P. 58(a). When a separate document is required, a judgment
       or order is entered when the judgment or order is set forth in a
       separate document or when 150 days have run from entry of the
       judgment or order on the civil docket, whichever is earlier. Fed. R.
       App. P. 4(a)(7)(A); Fed. R. Civ. P. 58(c)(2).
             A timely-filed motion to alter or amend a judgment under
       Rule 59 suspends the finality of the judgment for purposes of appeal
       and tolls the time for taking an appeal. Fed. R. App. P. 4(a)(4)(A).
       But a motion to alter or amend a judgment must be filed no later
USCA11 Case: 22-13242      Document: 80-1       Date Filed: 01/04/2024     Page: 5 of 8

       22-13242                Opinion of the Court                          5

       than 28 days after the entry of the judgment, and an untimely mo-
       tion does not toll the time for filing a notice of appeal. Fed. R. Civ.
       P. 59(e); Green, 606 F.3d at 1300.
              The Jains challenge the district court’s sanctions order and
       several prior orders leading up to the sanctions hearing—namely,
       the court’s orders in documents 227, 228, 236, 238, 239, 247, 254,
       and 257. For purposes of calculating the timeliness of the appeal,
       the sanctions order is the final post-judgment order because it fully
       disposed of all issues raised in the district court’s show cause order.
       That is, the court’s prior decisions relating to the show cause order
       merged into the sanctions order. See Barfield v. Brierton, 883 F.2d
       923, 930–31 (11th Cir. 1989); see also Mickles v. Country Club Inc., 887
       F.3d 1270, 1278–79 (11th Cir. 2018) (explaining that an appeal from
       the final judgment brings up for review all preceding non-final or-
       ders that produced the judgment).
               Because the district court issued its sanctions order on Janu-
       ary 11, 2022, and the Jains filed the instant notice of appeal on Sep-
       tember 23, 2022, their notice was untimely. See 28 U.S.C. § 2107(a);
       Fed. R. App. P. 4(a)(1)(A); Fed. R. Civ. P. 58(c)(2). Even though the
       Jains filed a motion for an extension of time to file a motion for
       reconsideration, their deadline to appeal was unaffected because
       they did not file a motion for reconsideration within 28 days of the
       sanctions order, and the district court is not permitted to extend
       the Rule 4(a)(4) deadline. See Fed. R. App. P. 4(a)(4)(A); Green, 606
       F.3d at 1300. We therefore dismiss the appeal to the extent that it
USCA11 Case: 22-13242      Document: 80-1      Date Filed: 01/04/2024     Page: 6 of 8

       6                      Opinion of the Court                  22-13242

       challenges the original sanctions order because the notice of appeal
       was untimely.
              Similarly, the Jains challenge on appeal three subsequent or-
       ders about their obligation to pay sanctions in documents 261, 263,
       and 265. The court entered these orders between February 3, 2022,
       and February 22, 2022, therefore rendering the notice of appeal as
       to those orders also untimely. The Jains’ untimely Rule 59(e) mo-
       tion did not toll the time for filing a notice of appeal. Green, 606
       F.3d at 1300. For the same reasons as the sanctions order, we dis-
       miss the appeal to the extent it challenges these February orders.
       See Fed. R. App. P. 4(a).
                                        III.

               Unlike their challenge to the original sanctions order, the
       Jains’ notice of appeal of the denial of their motion for reconsider-
       ation was timely filed. We therefore have jurisdiction to review
       that challenge. 28 U.S.C. § 2107(a); Fed. R. App. P. 4(a)(1)(A). A dis-
       trict court’s denial of a Rule 59(e) motion is reviewed for an abuse
       of discretion. Lambert v. Fulton County, 253 F.3d 588, 598 (11th Cir.
       2001). Rule 59(e) may not be used “to relitigate old matters, raise
       argument or present evidence that could have been raised prior to
       the entry of judgment.” Michael Linet, Inc. v. Vill. of Wellington, 408
       F.3d 757, 763 (11th Cir. 2005).
              The district court did not abuse its discretion in denying the
       motion for reconsideration. Before the court entered judgment,
       the Jains could have raised their arguments regarding their nonfriv-
       olous filings, their need for due process, and the causal link
USCA11 Case: 22-13242      Document: 80-1      Date Filed: 01/04/2024     Page: 7 of 8

       22-13242               Opinion of the Court                          7

       between the attorney’s fees and the sanctions awarded. The re-
       maining arguments presented on appeal were not raised in the mo-
       tion for reconsideration and are therefore forfeited. Access Now, Inc.
       v. Sw. Airlines Co., 385 F.3d 1324, 1331 (11th Cir. 2004). We there-
       fore affirm the district court’s denial of the Jains’ motion for recon-
       sideration of the sanctions order.
                                        IV.

              The Jains’ last argument is that the district court abused its
       discretion by denying their motion for a supersedeas bond and stay
       pending appeal. But if an appellant intends to argue on appeal that
       a finding or conclusion is unsupported by or contrary to the evi-
       dence, he or she must include in the record a transcript of all evi-
       dence relevant to that finding or conclusion. Fed. R. App.
       P. 10(b)(2). Under the “absence-equals-affirmance rule,” the appel-
       lant has the burden “to ensure the record on appeal is complete,
       and where a failure to discharge that burden prevents us from re-
       viewing the district court’s decision we ordinarily will affirm the
       judgment.” Selman v. Cobb Cnty. Sch. Dist., 449 F.3d 1320, 1333 (11th
       Cir. 2006). This requirement applies to pro se appellants. Loren v.
       Sasser, 309 F.3d 1296, 1304–05 (11th Cir. 2002).
               The district court denied the motion and read its order into
       the record at the August 31, 2022, hearing on the motion. But the
       Jains failed to order the transcript from the hearing, prohibiting us
       from reviewing the district court’s reasoning and findings. We
       therefore cannot conduct meaningful appellate review because the
       Janis failed “to ensure the record on appeal is complete.” Selman,
USCA11 Case: 22-13242      Document: 80-1      Date Filed: 01/04/2024     Page: 8 of 8

       8                      Opinion of the Court                  22-13242

       449 F.3d at 1333. Accordingly, we affirm the district court’s denial
       of the motion for a supersedeas bond.
                                         V.

             For the foregoing reasons, we GRANT appellees’ motion to
       dismiss appellants’ pre-filing injunction claim. Appellants’ pre-filing
       injunction challenge and sanctions challenge are DISMISSED. For
       the remaining challenges, the district court is AFFIRMED.