DFS Guam v. AB Won Pat Intl Airport Authority

CourtSuperior Court of Guam
DecidedJanuary 10, 2018
DocketCV0307-16
StatusUnknown

This text of DFS Guam v. AB Won Pat Intl Airport Authority (DFS Guam v. AB Won Pat Intl Airport Authority) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Superior Court of Guam primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
DFS Guam v. AB Won Pat Intl Airport Authority, (superctguam 2018).

Opinion

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v • l

'FILED SUPERIOR COURT 1 OF GUAM 2 ZUIB JAN 10 PH 3: 08 3 CLE F COURT 4

8 IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF GUAM 9

10 DFS GUAM L.p., CIVIL CASE NO.: CV0307-16

11 plaintiff, 12 DECISION AND ORDER vs. (Plaintiff's Motion to Enter Judgment and 13 to Dismiss Remaining Counts) THE A.B. WON PAT INTERNATIONAL 14 AIRPORT AUTHORITY, GUAM, 15 Defendant. 16

17 INTRODUCTION 18 This matter came before the honorable Anita A. Sukola on November 9, 2017 on DFS

19 Guam L.P.'s ("Plaintiff') Motion to Enter Judgment and to Dismiss Remaining Counts. Attorney i 20 G. Patrick Civille appeared on behalf of the Plaintiff. Attorney Genevieve P. Rapadas appeared on

21 behalf of the A.B. Won Pat International Airport Authority ("Defendant"). Upon review of the

22 written and oral arguments, and legal authorities presented by the Parties, the Court issues the

23 instant Decision and Order GRANTING in part Plaintiffs Motion to Enter Judgment and

24 Dismiss Remaining Counts. The Court hereby ORDERS all claims in the First Amended

25 Complaint tiled on June 9, 2016, except those portions of the HM, Sixth, Ninth, and Tenth Claims

26 discussed herein, be DISMISSED with prejudice. A Judgment shall issue simultaneous to this

27 Decision and Order.

28 ORIGINAL CV0307-16 DFS Guam L.P, v. The A.B. Won Pat International Airport Authority Page l of ll Decision and Order Re: Pi's Mot. Enter I. and Dismiss Remaining Counts 4 IlllwI H

I

1 BACKGROUND

2 The factual background of this case was previously laid out by the Court in a Decision and

3 Order on Plaintiff's and Defendant's motions for partial and for summary judgment respectively.

4 However, for the purpose of clarity, the facts necessary to the instant Decision and Order are as

5 follows. During litigation regarding procurement-related protests before the Superior Court,

6 Plaintiff submitted requests to Defendant on July 7, 2015, August 12, 2015, and March 8, 2016, as

7 allowed by the Sunshine Reform Act of 1999 ("Sunshine Act"). Decision and Order 2 (June 26,

8 2017). The requests sought minutes, transcripts, and recordings from Meetings of Defendant's

9 Board of Directors and between members of Defendant's Board of Directors and the Board's

10 Legal Counsel on various dates ding the period from 2012 through 2016. at 4-5 .

11 Plaintiff subsequently tiled the First Amended Complaint in this action on June 9, 2016.

12 Plaintiff alleged the Defendant and several members of the Defendant's Board of Directors

13 violated the Open Government Law ("OGL") by infer alia, "failing to make and maintain in

14 accordance with the requirements of law, minutes and verbatim recorded and written transcripts of

15 certain of [Defendant's] Board's executive and closed sessions and meetings during the period

16 from July 11, 2012 Mouth January 28, 2016." First Am. Con pl. 1 3. The First Amended

17 Complaint alternatively alleged "that if such records exist, [Defendant or Defendant's] Board ...

18 violated the OGL and Sunshine Act by failing to make these documents publicly available, as

19 required by law, and refusing to produce these documents in response to DFS's July 7, 2015,

20 August 12, 2015, and March 8, 2016 requests under the Sunshine Act." ld,

21 Plaintiff tiled a Motion for Partial Summary Judgment and Defendant filed a Motion for

22 Summary Judgment on March 8, 2017. The Court issued a Decision and Order disposing of both

23 motions on June 26, 2017. In the Decision and Order, the Court found several facts undisputed.

24 The Court found that the Defendant's Board of Directors convened several executive sessions,

25 which were closed to the public, during the period from July 1, 2012 through August 12, 2014;

26 Decision and Order 3 (June 26, 2017). The Court also found that certain individual members of

CV0307-16 DFS Guam L.P. v. The A.B. Won Pat International Airport Authority Page 2 of ll Decision and Order Re: Pl's Mot. Enter J. and Dismiss Remaining Counts uI

1 Defendant's Board of Directors met with the Board's Legal Counsel at different times on March

2 27, 2013, April 5, 2013, April 8, 2013, and April 9, 2013. Decision and Order 4 (June 26, 2017).

3 The Court also noted Defendant filed a Petition to Seal certain transcripts of the Executive

4 Sessions of Defendant's Board of Directors on August 6, 2015. ii at 5. A Judge of the Superior

5 Court granted the Petition which effectively sealed transcripts of executive sessions held during

6 the period between July 11, 2012 arid January 29, 2015. On August 31, 2015, the same Court

7 expanded the Sealing Order to include transcripts of executive sessions of Defendant's Board of

8 Directors held on February 23, 2015 and April 9, 2015. Q, at 6.

9 Notwithstanding the Sealing Order, in the June 26, 2017 Decision and Order, this Court

10 found Defendant violated "Section 10103 of the Sunshine Act and Section 8111 of the OGL by

11 failing to disclose public documents in response to Plaintiffs July 7, 2015 Sunshine Request."

12 at 12. This Court found the transcripts of the Executive Sessions held dining meetings of

13 Defendant's Board of Directors were public documents within the meaning of the OGL. at 11-

14 12. The Court reasoned that at the time Plaintiff submitted the July 7, 2015 request to Defendant

15 under the Sunshine Act, there was no seeding order in place, and the six-month statutory sealing

16 period had lapsed, for the transcripts of the closed executive sessions held during Board Meetings

17 in 2012, 2013, and 2014. Thus this Court granted summary judgment on Plaintiff's Fifth and

18 Ninth Causes of Action for Declaratory Relief, but "only with respect to the missing session

19 transcripts for the closed executive sessions held in 2012, 2013, and 2014." Ii Plaintiffs Fifth and

20 Ninth Causes of Action sought declaratory relief against Defendant related to alleged violations of

21 the Sunshine Act and the OGL. This Court concluded there was no genuine dispute as to a material

22 fact that Defendant failed to disclose transcripts of the closed executive transcripts held in 2012,

23 2013, and 2014, and that such failure constituted a violation of the OGL since the Court found the

24 closed session transcripts were public documents and were not sealed until August 13, 2015.

25 However, in the June 26, 2017 Decision and Order the Court also concluded the transcripts

26 sought in the July 7, 2015 Sunshine Request were no longer considered public documents within

27 the meaning of the OGL once the Sealing Order was entered on August 13, 2015. Decision and

CV0307-16 DFS Guam L.P. v. The A.B. W on Pat International Airport Authority Page 3 of l l Decision and Order Re: PTs Mot. Enter J. and Dismiss RemainingCounts 1 Order 13 (June 26, 2017). Thus, the Court denied summary judgment on Plaintiffs Sixth and 2 Tenth Causes of Action for injunctive relief. The Court found that Plaintiff was not entitled to

3 summary judgment on the requests for injunctive relief because "the Court [could not] compel

4 disclosure of documents that are currently under seal pursuant to another court's order." Q

5 According to documents filed by Plaintiff, after this Court entered the June 26, 2017

6 Decision and Order, the August 13, 2015 Sealing Order which sealed the 2012-2014 Transcripts

7 expired on September 14, 2017. Civille Decl. in Supp. Mot. Enter J.

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