Kennedy v. United States Citizenship & Immigration Services

871 F. Supp. 2d 996, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 70011, 2012 WL 1831599
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. California
DecidedMay 18, 2012
DocketCase No. 5:11-cv-02407-EJD
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 871 F. Supp. 2d 996 (Kennedy v. United States Citizenship & Immigration Services) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. California primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Kennedy v. United States Citizenship & Immigration Services, 871 F. Supp. 2d 996, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 70011, 2012 WL 1831599 (N.D. Cal. 2012).

Opinion

ORDER GRANTING RESPONDENT’S MOTION TO DISMISS FOR LACK OF JURISDICTION AND MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT.

EDWARD J. DAVILA, District Judge.

Presently before the Court is a petition filed by Petitioner, Richard Kennedy. On his Certificate of Naturalization, Petitioner seeks relief to amend both his name and date of birth. See Pet., ¶ 1-3, Docket Item No. 1. Respondent moves the Court to dismiss Petitioner’s request to amend his name for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. Respondent also seeks summary judgment denying Petitioner’s request to amend his date of birth. See, Motion Brief, Docket Item No. 20. Petitioner has not submitted written opposition to Respondent’s brief. His Petition, however, does provide grounds, which if proven, support the relief sought. Consistent with Supreme Court authority, and given that the Petitioner appears Pro Se, those grounds have been construed liberally. See, Haines v. Kerner, 404 U.S. 519, 520-21, 92 S.Ct. 594, 30 L.Ed.2d 652 (1972).

Having reviewed the relevant portions of the record — including the Petition and the Respondent’s brief — the Court grants the Respondent’s motions for dismissal and summary judgment.

I. BACKGROUND

Petitioner’s birth name was Van Thanh Nguyen. See, CAR092-94.1 He states that he was born on January 1,1952. See, Pet., at ¶ 111(a). To avoid being drafted into the Vietnamese army, Petitioner states that he told “Vietnamese authorities his birth date was January 1,1955 making him ineligible for the draft.” Id., at ¶ 111(b)

Petitioner entered the United States on October 22, 1975. He listed his name as Van Thanh Nguyen and his date of birth as January 1, 1955 on his application to enter the United States. See, CAR 092-094. On September 21, 1978 he further listed his birth date as January 1, 1955 when he applied for permanent residency. See, CAR 078-80. The same birth date was listed when he applied for citizenship on July 14, 1982. See, CAR 073-76. On July 5, 1984, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California naturalized Petitioner. See, Pet., at ¶ 111(e); CAR 064. At that time, the court issued a decree granting Petitioner’s petition for a name change from Van Thanh Nguyen to Richard Kennedy. See, CAR [999]*999065. The decree was made pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1447(e). His Certificate of Naturalization now bears the name, Richard Kennedy — -a name he assented to, and chose “based on the names of two previous U.S. Presidents.” Id., at ¶ III(c).

On October 13, 1992 Petitioner claims that he sought and obtained an order adjusting his date of birth in Santa Clara County Superior Court. The order gives the adjusted date of birth as January 1, 1952. Id., at Pet. ¶ 111(a) and Ex. B, (‘Order to Adjust Birth Record’). He claims that he sought this order upon “learning of his official birth date” in 1992. Id. at Ex. B; CAR 027-28.

On March 17, 2006 Petitioner filed an N-565 form seeking a replacement for his Certificate of Naturalization. On this document — filed fourteen years after obtaining the state court order regarding his adjusted birth date — Petitioner again listed his date of birth as January 1, 1955. See, CAR 060. On September 20, 2010 Petitioner filed a second N-565 form seeking to amend the date of birth of his Certificate of Naturalization to January 1, 1952. On November 12, 2010, the request was denied. Later, that same month, he appealed the denial of his application. See, CAR 032.

On January 3, 2011 Petitioner made a further attempt to change his date, of birth by filing another N-565 form. This application sought the same relief as the September 20 application. Again, only a change of date of birth was sought. See, Pet., at ¶ 111(d); CAR 015-16. On February 14, 2011 the District Director of the USCIS Nebraska Service Center denied this second application with the appeal being denied on March 24, 2011. See, Pet., at ¶ 111(d); CAR 002-10.

On May 17, 2011 Petitioner filed the present Petition before the Court. The Petition seeks amendment to date of birth and, for the first time, change to his name on the Certificate of Naturalization. See, Pet., at ¶ 111(a). On November 15, 2011 motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction and motion for summary judgment were filed by the Respondent. On February 7, 2012 this Court granted an order providing that both motions be determined without oral argument.

II. ISSUES FOR DETERMINATION

Respondent summarized the two issues that are before the Court. Minor modifications have been made as follows:

A. Whether the Court possesses subject matter jurisdiction to order Respondent to amend the name on the Certificate of Naturalization of Petitioner, Richard Kennedy, to his native born name, Van Thanh Nguyen? If not, does Rule 12(b)(1) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure require the Court to dismiss the portion of the Petition seeking this relief?

B. Whether Petitioner has met his burden of proof to show his entitlement to an amended Certificate of Naturalization that bears a different date of birth to that presently inscribed on the record? If not, does Rule 56 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure require the Court to issue summary judgment denying the portion of the Petition seeking this relief?

Before engaging the analysis, it is worth noting that entangled within these motions for determination is the spectre of immigration law — an area of law described as “notoriously intricate” and “second only to the Internal Revenue Code in complexity.” Castro-O’Ryan v. U.S. Dep’t of Immigration and Naturalization, 847 F.2d 1307, 1312 (9th Cir.1988). Amongst other reasons — including the fact that it presents an issue of first impression in the Northern District of California — close attention has been given to the disposition of this case and the relevant law that applies in the naturalization context.

[1000]*1000III. DISCUSSION

A. Whether the Court Possesses Subject Matter Jurisdiction to Order Respondent to Amend Petitioner’s Name on his Certificate of Naturalization

Respondent moves to dismiss the Petition based on lack of subject matter jurisdiction. Pursuant to 12(b)(1) Fed.R.Civ.P., the Court may dismiss an action for lack of subject matter where the court has neither constitutional, nor statutory basis for a determination. See, Safe Air for Everyone v. Meyer, 373 F.3d 1035, 1039 (9th Cir.2004).

Rule 12(b)(1) motions may challenge jurisdiction facially or factually. Id. “In a facial attack, the challenger asserts that the allegations contained in a complaint are insufficient on their face to invoke federal jurisdiction.

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871 F. Supp. 2d 996, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 70011, 2012 WL 1831599, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/kennedy-v-united-states-citizenship-immigration-services-cand-2012.