No. 99-1520
In the Supreme Court of the United States
TRIBAL GOVERNING BOARD OF THE LAC COURTE OREILLES BAND OF LAKE SUPERIOR
CHIPPEWA INDIANS, PETITIONER
v.
SANDRA THOMAS, ET AL.
ON PETITION FOR A WRIT OF CERTIORARI
TO THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE SEVENTH CIRCUIT
BRIEF FOR THE FEDERAL RESPONDENTS
IN OPPOSITION
SETH P. WAXMAN
Solicitor General
Counsel of Record
LOIS J. SCHIFFER
Assistant Attorney General
DAVID C. SHILTON
SYLVIA F. LIU
Attorneys
Department of Justice
Washington, D.C. 20530-0001
(202) 514-2217
QUESTION PRESENTED
Whether a Tribe's governing body is a necessary party to a suit by a voter
challenging the Secretary of the Interior's decision under 25 U.S.C. 461
to nullify the results of an election ratifying amendments to the Tribe's
constitution.
In the Supreme Court of the United States
No. 99-1520
TRIBAL GOVERNING BOARD OF THE LAC COURTE OREILLES BAND OF LAKE SUPERIOR
CHIPPEWA INDIANS, PETITIONER
v.
SANDRA THOMAS, ET AL.
ON PETITION FOR A WRIT OF CERTIORARI
TO THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE SEVENTH CIRCUIT
BRIEF FOR THE FEDERAL RESPONDENTS
IN OPPOSITION
OPINIONS BELOW
The opinion of the court of appeals (Pet. App. A1-A13) is reported at 189
F.3d 662. The opinion of the district court (Pet. App. A17-A37) is unreported.
JURISDICTION
The judgment of the court of appeals was entered on September 7, 1999. A
petition for rehearing was denied on December 13, 1999 (Pet. App. A58).
The petition for a writ of certiorari was filed on March 13, 2000. The jurisdiction
of this Court is invoked under 28 U.S.C. 1254(1).
STATEMENT
1. The Indian Reorganization Act (IRA) authorizes any Indian Tribe to "adopt
an appropriate constitution" through "a special election authorized
and called by the Secretary [of the Interior] under such rules and regulations
as the Secretary may prescribe." 25 U.S.C. 476(a) and (a)(1). A Tribe's
constitution becomes effective upon the Secretary's approval. 25 U.S.C.
476(a)(2) and (d). The IRA also authorizes the Secretary to conduct elections
to ratify amendments to tribal constitutions and to approve the results
of those elections. 25 U.S.C. 476(c)(1)(B) and (2)(B), 476(d). The IRA provides
that the Secretary shall approve a constitution or an amendment within 45
days after the election unless he finds that the constitution or amendments
are contrary to applicable law. 25 U.S.C. 476(d)(1).
If the Secretary receives a valid request to hold an amendment ratification
election, and the Secretary determines that the proposed amendments are
legal, the Secretary must call an election within 90 days. 25 U.S.C. 476(c)(1)(B);
25 C.F.R. 81.5(d). To become effective, election results must receive the
Secretary's approval. Any qualified voter may contest the results to the
Secretary within three days of the election. 25 C.F.R. 81.22. The Secretary
has 45 days to review such election challenges and to decide whether to
approve the election results. 25 U.S.C. 476(d)(1). IRA affords a private
right of action to enforce its provisions in federal district court. 25
U.S.C. 476(d)(2).
2. Respondent Sandra Thomas is a member of the Lac Courte Oreilles Band
of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians (the Tribe). Pet. App. A2. Thomas served
as chairperson of a committee to draft proposals to amend the Tribe's constitution.
Ibid. The committee eventually adopted four proposals and submitted them
to the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) in the Department of the Interior.
Id. at A2-A3. The BIA called for an election on two of those proposals -
Proposed Amendments A and B. Id. at A3. Proposed Amendment A redefines tribal
membership in terms of lineal descendancy rather than blood quantum. Ibid.
Proposed Amendment B lengthens the term of office for elected tribal officials.
Ibid.
The BIA conducted an election on the two proposals. Pet. App. A3. Both proposed
amendments received a majority of the votes cast. Ibid. Several tribal members,
including the Chairman of the Tribe's governing board, contested the election
results. Ibid. The BIA rejected the challenges and formally approved the
amendments to the Tribe's constitution. Ibid.
The Chairman of the Tribe's governing board sought further review of that
decision. Pet. App. A4. In response, the BIA revoked its approval of the
election results. Ibid. The BIA concluded that elections to ratify constitutional
amendments must be open to the same class of voters who were entitled to
vote in the election adopting the constitution, and that a significant percentage
of those voting on Amendments A and B did not meet the voting criteria for
the original constitutional election. Ibid. The BIA stated that it intended
to conduct a new election on the proposed amendments. Ibid.
3. Respondent Thomas and others (respondents) filed suit against the Department
of the Interior, the Secretary of the Interior, and several other federal
officials (federal respondents), challenging the BIA's disapproval of the
election results. Respondents alleged that (1) the BIA's disapproval exceeded
the 45-day period allowed for such action; (2) the BIA's action was arbitrary
and capricious under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), 5 U.S.C. 706(2);
and (3) the BIA violated the federal government's trust responsibility to
the Tribe. Pet. App. A5. The federal respondents moved to dismiss on the
ground that the Tribe's governing board (petitioner) is a necessary and
indispensable party to the action within the meaning of Federal Rule of
Civil Procedure 19. Ibid.
The district court initially denied the motion to dismiss. Pet. App. A38-A57.
The court concluded that petitioner is a necessary party under Rule 19.
Id. at A54-A55. The court reasoned that the "proposed amendments deal
with matters of fundamental importance to the tribe," id. at A53; that
if respondents prevailed," the BIA could be exposed to additional litigation"
initiated by petitioner, id. at A53-A54; and that "even if the BIA
decision is reversed and the 1992 results are reinstated, [petitioner] may
frustrate efforts to enforce the amendments," id. at A54. The court
declined to dismiss the action, however, on the ground that petitioner might
join the action voluntarily or waive its immunity if joined by respondents.
Id. at A55-A56.
Petitioner declined to become a party. Pet. App. A5. Respondents then amended
their complaint to name petitioner as a defendant. Id. at A6. Petitioner
and the federal respondents moved to dismiss, and the court granted the
motions. Id. at A17-A37. The district court held that claims against petitioner
were barred by tribal sovereign immunity. Id. at A26-A27. The court dismissed
the claims against the federal respondents for failure to join a "necessary"
and "indispensable" party under Rule 19. Id. at A28-A31.
4. The court of appeals reversed, holding that petitioner is not a "necessary"
party under Rule 19(a). Pet. App. A1-A13. While the court accepted the district
court's finding that petitioner has a strong interest in the subject matter
of the litigation, it concluded that "the fact that a tribe has an
interest in the litigation is not enough in itself to make it a necessary
party in the sense of Rule 19." Id. at A9. Noting that "the IRA
explicitly reserves to the federal government the power to hold and approve
the elections that adopt or alter tribal constitutions," id. at A8,
and that Congress had "refused to reflect the tribal interest in the
legal structure of tribal constitutional elections," id. at A10, the
court of appeals concluded that "the district court erred in finding
the governing board had to be included in the lawsuit based on the depth
of the tribe's interest in the matters addressed in the Secretarial election,"
ibid.
The court also was not persuaded "that there is a legally cognizable
risk of incomplete relief." Pet. App. A10. The court reasoned that
"the tribal governing board has no legal authority to refuse to implement
amendments to the tribal constitution that have been put to a vote and approved
by the Secretary." Ibid.
The court of appeals also rejected the argument that the threat of future
litigation by petitioner against the BIA was sufficient to make petitioner
a "necessary" party. Pet. App. A10-A11. The court reasoned that
such a conclusion "would be tantamount to holding that all voters [in
elections to ratify tribal constitutions] are necessary parties," because
all such voters would "have the same standing to sue and might some
day exercise it." Id. at A11. Finally, the court noted that its decision
leaves petitioner free to protect its interest in litigation through intervention
or participation as amicus curiae, and at the same time "does not slam
the courthouse door in the face" of those "who seek only to invoke
the judicial oversight of the Secretary's actions provided for in 25 U.S.C.
§ 476(d)(2)." Id. at A12.
ARGUMENT
Petitioner contends (Pet. 5-24) that a Tribe's governing body is a necessary
party to a suit by a voter challenging a decision by the Secretary of the
Interior to disapprove the results of an election ratifying amendments to
a tribal constitution. The court below, however, is the first court of appeals
to issue a published decision on that question. Moreover, the court's Rule
19 decision turns on its assessment of the specific statutory scheme at
issue; it does not raise any more general issue under Federal Rule of Civil
Procedure 19. Review by this Court is therefore not warranted.*
1. a. Petitioner first contends (Pet. 7-13) that the court of appeals' decision
conflicts with decisions of this Court holding that Tribes retain their
powers of self-government except to the extent that they have been limited
by Congress. The court of appeals, however, recognized that Tribes retain
their powers of self-government except to the extent that they are limited
by Congress. Applying that principle, the court concluded that the specific
statutory scheme at issue significantly limits the powers of an IRA Tribe
over the process for
amending tribal constitutions. Pet. App. A8-A10. In particular, the court
noted that the IRA gives the Secretary of the Interior the power to hold
and approve the elections that alter IRA tribal constitutions, id. at A8,
that Congress had rejected a recommendation to give Tribes the authority
to decide election challenges, id. at A9, and that Congress gave individual
voters a statutory right to seek judicial review of the Secretary's election
disapproval decisions, id. at A12.
Those considerations based on the IRA itself, and not the court's failure
to apply the background principle that a Tribe retains its powers of self-government
in the absence of limitation by Congress, led the court to conclude that
petitioner does not have the kind of interest that would make it a necessary
party to the present litigation. Petitioner's first contention therefore
does not warrant review.
b. Petitioner next contends (Pet. 15-16) that the United States has a conflict
of interest that disables it from adequately representing petitioner's interest.
The court of appeals, however, did not hold that the United States could
adequately represent petitioner's interest in the litigation. Instead, as
discussed above, it held that petitioner does not have the kind of interest
in the present litigation that would make it a necessary party in the first
place. Pet. App. A8-A10. The question whether the United States can adequately
represent petitioner's interest is therefore not properly presented here.
Even if the question were properly presented, however, it would not warrant
review. In support of its contention that the United States has a disabling
conflict, petitioner argues (Pet. 16) that respondents sought money damages
against both petitioner and the federal respondents, and that the United
States has a different view from petitioner on the meaning of certain provisions
of the Tribe's constitution. Respondents, however, have waived their money
damages claims. Pet. App. A5, A12. Moreover, respondents' complaint does
not raise any issue concerning how the Tribe's constitution should be interpreted.
The circumstances identified by petitioner therefore do not suggest that
the United States has a conflict of interest that would disable it from
adequately representing petitioner's interest in this case. In any event,
the question whether those circumstances give rise to a conflict of interest
is fact-bound; it does not raise any issue of general importance warranting
this Court's review.
c. Petitioner also contends (Pet. 17-18) that it is a necessary party because,
in its absence, complete relief cannot be afforded among the existing parties.
In particular, it contends that the constitutional amendments at issue direct
petitioner to enact an ordinance implementing the amendments, and that,
if respondents prevail in the present litigation, petitioner might adopt
an ordinance that respondents find unsatisfactory. Respondents, however,
have not sought in the present litigation to affect whatever discretion
petitioner might have in implementing the constitutional amendments. Instead,
they have sought only to invalidate the Secretary's disapproval of Proposed
Amendments A and B and to restore the legal validity of those amendments.
Pet. App. A4-A5. The possibility that petitioner might implement the constitutional
amendments in a way that respondents find unsatisfactory therefore does
not affect a court's ability to award complete relief in the present case
should it rule in respondents' favor.
In any event, petitioner's complete relief argument, like its conflict-of-interest
argument, affects only the parties to the present litigation. It does not
raise any issue of general importance warranting this Court's review.
2. Petitioner also errs in contending (Pet. 18-21) that the court of appeals'
decision conflicts with Seminole Tribe v. Florida, 517 U.S. 44 (1996), and
Florida v. Seminole Tribe, 181 F.3d 1237 (11th Cir. 1999). In the first
of those decisions, this Court held that Congress does not have power under
the Indian Commerce Clause to abrogate a State's sovereign immunity from
suit under the Eleventh Amendment. It therefore held that the Seminole Tribe
was barred from suing the State of Florida to enforce the Indian Gaming
Regulatory Act (IGRA), 25 U.S.C. 2701 et seq. In Florida v. Seminole Tribe,
supra, the Eleventh Circuit held that an action brought by the State against
the Tribe to enforce provisions of IGRA was barred by tribal sovereign immunity.
Neither case involved any question concerning the statutory scheme at issue
here or Rule 19. There is therefore no conflict between the decision below
and those decisions.
3. Finally, petitioner contends (Pet. 22-24) that the court of appeals erred
in holding that, in order to be considered a necessary party, a Tribe must
first pursue its own legal remedies against the Secretary. The court of
appeals, however, did not impose any such requirement. Before observing
that petitioner had failed to exercise its statutory right to challenge
the Secretary's initial approval of the constitutional amendments, the court
first decided on other grounds that petitioner is not a necessary party
to the present litigation. Pet. App. A8-A11. The court then concluded that
petitioner should not be able to use its failure to follow the prescribed
statutory procedures for challenging the Secretary's approval of the amendments
as a basis for creating an interest that would give it necessary party status.
Id. at A11-A12. That unremarkable conclusion does not warrant review.
CONCLUSION
The petition for a writ of certiorari should be denied.
Respectfully submitted.
SETH P. WAXMAN
Solicitor General
Counsel of Record
LOIS J. SCHIFFER
Assistant Attorney General
DAVID C. SHILTON
SYLVIA F. LIU
Attorneys
JUNE 2000
* The district court dismissed the claims against petitioner on sovereign
immunity grounds, Pet. App. A26-A27, and then dismissed the claims against
the federal respondents on the ground that the Tribe was an indispensable
party that could not be joined, id. at A28-A31. Although the court of appeals
reversed the latter holding, it did not reverse the former. There accordingly
is some question whether petitioner, which of course does not challenge
the ruling that it is protected by sovereign immunity, is a "party"
that may invoke the Court's certiorari jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. 1254(1).