Arbogast v. Kansas Department of Labor

789 F.3d 1174, 31 Am. Disabilities Cas. (BNA) 1245, 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 10387, 2015 WL 3797681
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
DecidedJune 19, 2015
Docket14-3091
StatusPublished
Cited by36 cases

This text of 789 F.3d 1174 (Arbogast v. Kansas Department of Labor) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Arbogast v. Kansas Department of Labor, 789 F.3d 1174, 31 Am. Disabilities Cas. (BNA) 1245, 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 10387, 2015 WL 3797681 (10th Cir. 2015).

Opinion

*1178 McHUGH, Circuit Judge.

Defendant-appellant Kansas Department of Labor (KDOL) brings this interlocutory appeal, arguing the district court should have dismissed plaintiff-appellee Kathleen Arbogast’s suit because (1) KDOL lacks the capacity to sue and to be sued under Kansas law and (2) even if KDOL is a proper defendant, it is immune from suit by operation of the Eleventh Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. We hold that we lack appellate jurisdiction to consider KDOL’s capacity argument, but we exercise our jurisdiction under the collateral order doctrine and affirm the district court’s determination that KDOL is not entitled to Eleventh Amendment immunity from Ms. Arbogast’s claims.

I. BACKGROUND

Ms. Arbogast was employed in the Workers Compensation Division of KDOL, a governmental subdivision of the State of Kansas. Ms. Arbogast suffers from asthma and, in April 2008, complained that perfumes and other strong fragrances in the workplace were impairing her ability to work. In September 2010, Ms. Arbo-gast was moved to a workspace in the basement of her office building in an attempt to alleviate the problem. But Ms. Arbogast continued to suffer asthma attacks when coworkers wearing fragrances would come speak with her, prompting Ms. Arbogast to make additional complaints to her supervisor. On August 1, 2011, Karin Brownlee, then-Secretary of Labor, terminated Ms. Arbogast’s employment at KDOL.

On January 22, 2013, Ms. Arbogast filed suit, asserting claims of discrimination and retaliation in violation of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 29 U.S.C. § 701 et seq. 1 Ms. Arbogast named as defendants the “State of Kansas, Department of Labor” and Ms. Brownlee in her individual capacity. She sought monetary damages in excess of $100,000.

KDOL moved to dismiss Ms. Arbogast’s Rehabilitation Act claims pursuant to Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 12(b)(1), 12(b)(6), and 12(c). Relevant to this appeal, KDOL argued the district court did not have jurisdiction to adjudicate the claim because (1) KDOL lacks the capacity to sue or to be sued under Kansas law and (2) Kansas has not waived its Eleventh Amendment immunity from suit. Ms. Ar-bogast filed a motion seeking limited discovery on the jurisdictional issue, which the district court granted.

After the parties completed limited discovery, the district court denied KDOL’s motion to dismiss. Specifically, the district court found KDOL had waived its Eleventh Amendment immunity by accepting federal funds for its Unemployment Insurance Division. Although Ms. Arbo-gast worked in the Workers Compensation Division, the' district court concluded that KDOL’s acceptance of federal funds for the Unemployment Insurance Division was sufficient to waive Eleventh Amendment immunity for the entirety of KDOL, including the Workers Compensation Division. The district court also rejected KDOL’s argument that it did not have the capacity to be sued, finding it was merely a reiteration of KDOL’s immunity argument. KDOL now brings this interlocutory appeal.

II. DISCUSSION

KDOL argues (1) the district court erred in not dismissing Ms. Arbogast’s Rehabilitation Act claims because KDOL *1179 lacks the capacity to sue and to be sued under Kansas law and (2) even if KDOL is a proper defendant, it has not waived its Eleventh Amendment immunity from suit for purposes of Ms. Arbogast’s Rehabilitation Act claims. We address each claim in turn.

A. We Do Not Have Appellate Jurisdiction to Consider KDOL’s Claim that It Lacked the Capacity to be Sued

KDOL first argues the district court erred in refusing to dismiss Ms. Ar-bogast’s suit because KDOL lacks the capacity to sue or to be sued under Kansas law and is therefore not a proper defendant. See Fed.R.Civ.P. 17(b) (indicating that a party’s capacity to sue or be sued in federal court is determined by state law). Specifically, KDOL argues that, as merely a state agency, Kansas law does not endow it with the capacity to sue or to be sued. It further argued in its briefing before this court that we have jurisdiction to hear an immediate appeal of this issue under the collateral order doctrine. But counsel for KDOL conceded at oral argument that the collateral order doctrine may not permit interlocutory review of KDOL’s lack of capacity argument. For the reasons discussed below, this concession was appropriate.

Normally, federal appellate courts only have jurisdiction to hear appeals from “final decisions of the district courts.” 28 U.S.C. § 1291. But the U.S. Supreme Court has also recognized a “small class” of nonfinal orders, which, though not usually immediately appealable, are nonetheless amenable to interlocutory appeal under the collateral order doctrine. 2 See Cohen v. Beneficial Indus. Loan Corp., 337 U.S. 541, 546, 69 S.Ct. 1221, 93 L.Ed. 1528 (1949). Under this “narrow” exception to the final order rule, Digital Equip. Corp. v. Desktop Direct, Inc., 511 U.S. 863, 868, 114 S.Ct. 1992, 128 L.Ed.2d 842 (1994), the Supreme Court has recognized two ways in which an interlocutory order may be immediately reviewable: (1) the order must independently meet all of the required elements of a collateral order or (2) the order must fall within this court’s limited pendent jurisdiction. See Swint v. Chambers Cnty. Comm’n, 514 U.S. 35, 42, 50-51, 115 S.Ct. 1203, 131 L.Ed.2d 60 (1995) (citing Cohen, 337 U.S. at 546, 69 S.Ct. 1221); Crowe & Dunlevy, P.C. v. Stidham, 640 F.3d 1140, 1147 (10th Cir.2011). We address each possible basis of appellate jurisdiction in turn.

First, KDOL contends both its Eleventh Amendment immunity and lack of capacity claims fall within the collateral order doctrine. It is well established that orders denying state entities Eleventh Amendment immunity are immediately reviewable under the collateral order doctrine. Puerto Rico Aqueduct & Sewer Auth. v. Metcalf & Eddy, Inc., 506 U.S. 139, 147, 113 S.Ct. 684, 121 L.Ed.2d 605 (1993) (“We hold that States and state entities that claim to be ‘arms of the State’ may take advantage of the collateral order doctrine to appeal a district court order denying a claim of Eleventh Amendment immunity.”); accord Timpanogos Tribe v. Conway, 286 F.3d 1195, 1199— 1200 (10th Cir.2002). But we must determine whether KDOL’s lack of capacity claim is similarly amenable to immediate review.

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789 F.3d 1174, 31 Am. Disabilities Cas. (BNA) 1245, 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 10387, 2015 WL 3797681, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/arbogast-v-kansas-department-of-labor-ca10-2015.