Grubbs v. Norris

Decision Date17 March 1989
Docket NumberNo. 87-5196,87-5196
PartiesScotty GRUBBS, et al., Plaintiffs-Appellees, The Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, Proposed Intervenor/Appellant, v. Stephen H. NORRIS, et al., Defendants-Appellees.
CourtU.S. Court of Appeals — Sixth Circuit

James L. Charles (argued), Michael E. Moore, Mark C. Scruggs, Nashville, Tenn., for proposed appellant.

Gordon Bonnyman, W.J. Michael Cody, Ann Lacy Johns, Kimbra R. Spann (argued), Nashville, Tenn., David Kozlowski (argued), Legal Services of South Cent. Tennessee, Inc., Columbia, Tenn., for appellees.

Before ENGEL, Chief Judge, and KEITH and RYAN, Circuit Judges.

KEITH, Circuit Judge:

The Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County ("Metro") appeals the decision of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee denying its application to intervene by right as a plaintiff in this civil rights action involving conditions of confinement in Tennessee prisons. For the reasons set forth below, we REVERSE the decision below, and REMAND the case to the district court with instructions to grant the motion to intervene.

I. FACTS

On August 11, 1980, Tennessee's prison inmates brought suit against state corrections defendants ("the state") pursuant to 42 U.S.C. Sec. 1983 to challenge conditions in Tennessee's prison system. The case originated in state court and made its way to federal court when the Tennessee Supreme Court abstained from deciding the case due to the presence of significant constitutional issues. After discovery and trial, the district court determined that conditions in the Tennessee prisons violated the federal Constitution. The court ordered appointment of a special master, ordered submission of a plan to rectify constitutional violations, and retained jurisdiction over the matter to insure compliance with its orders.

Dissatisfied with the state's efforts to comply with those orders, on June 27, 1985, the district court ordered the state to reduce its prisoner population level to 7,019 inmates by December 31, 1985. On October 2, 1985, plaintiff-prisoners moved for additional relief, requesting the release of inmates or, in the alternative, that admission of new inmates to state prison reception centers be restricted. The Sheriff of Davidson County then moved to intervene; that motion was denied as untimely. On October 25, 1985, the state prisoners' motion for further relief was granted, and admittance to the state reception centers was restricted (the "October 1985 Order").

Restricting admittance to state reception centers had the effect of increasing the number of prisoners in the local and county prisons, since certain state prisoners are temporarily detained in local and county facilities pursuant to the mandate of the Tennessee Comprehensive Correction Improvement Act, Tenn.Code Ann. Sec. 41-1-504 (1985). According to that statute, the Governor may direct courts and sheriffs to stay the process of committing felons to state facilities. This "delayed intake directive" therefore would increase the number of state felons in Metro's jails awaiting removal from Metro's jails to a state facility.

Since January 15, 1986, Metro's inmate population has exceeded its designated capacity. On the other hand, by June of 1986, the state's prison population was below its designated capacity. On June 13, 1986, the state filed a report with the district court which demonstrated its compliance with the court's earlier orders, and which asked that the court modify its October 1985 Order to increase the state's prisoner population cap to 7,249, up from the 7,019 limitation. On September 10, 1986, the Special Master filed a Report and Recommendation asking that the state's request to increase the overall prison population be granted. This Report and Recommendation was adopted by the district court on October 28, 1986.

Exceeding its designated capacity by approximately 300 inmates, one third of whom were convicted felons sentenced to the state penitentiary, Metro moved to intervene by right as a plaintiff, pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 24(a)(2). The plaintiff-prisoners did not object to the intervention; however, the state did oppose the motion. On January 9, 1987, the district court denied Metro's motion to intervene on two grounds: that allowing intervention would prejudice the relief granted to the existing parties to the action; and that the factual basis for intervention did not establish a need for intervention by right under Rule 24(a)(2). This appeal followed.

II. DISCUSSION

The sole issue before this court is whether the district court erred in denying the Metropolitan Government's motion to intervene. 1 Fed.R.Civ.P. 24(a)(2) provides (a) Intervention of Right. Upon timely application anyone shall be permitted to intervene in an action: ... (2) when the applicant claims an interest relating to the property or transaction which is the subject of the action and the applicant is so situated that the disposition of the action may as a practical matter impair or impede the applicant's ability to protect that interest, unless the applicant's interest is adequately represented by existing parties.

Thus, according to this court's opinion in Triax Co. v. TRW Inc., 724 F.2d 1224, 1227 (6th Cir.1984), the proposed intervenors must meet four criteria before intervention by right is permitted: (1) the application for intervention must be timely; (2) the applicant must have a substantial, legal interest in the subject matter of the pending litigation; (3) the applicant's ability to protect that interest must be impaired; and (4) the present parties do not adequately represent the applicant's interest. The proposed intervenor must prove each of the four factors; failure to meet one of the criteria will require that the motion to intervene be denied. Id.

This circuit has not expressly adopted a standard of review for the denial of a motion to intervene of right except for the timeliness requirement, which is reviewable under an abuse of discretion standard. Bradley v. Milliken, 828 F.2d 1186, 1191 (6th Cir.1987); Michigan Association for Retarded Citizens v. Smith, 657 F.2d 102, 105 (6th Cir.1981). While permissive intervention under Rule 24(a) is clearly only reviewable under an abuse of discretion standard, there is a trend to review intervention of right using a more liberal standard of review. See especially Stringfellow v. Concerned Neighbors, 480 U.S. 370, 107 S.Ct. 1177, 1185, 94 L.Ed.2d 389 (1987) (Brennan, J., concurring), where Justice Brennan, in distinguishing Rule 24(b) permissive intervention from intervention of right under Rule 24(a), wrote that "Rule 24(a) considerably restricts the court's discretion whether to allow intervention of right by providing that such a party 'shall be permitted to intervene.' " Id. 107 S.Ct. at 1185, n. 1 (emphasis in original). Thus, he concluded, "a district court has less discretion to limit the participation of an intervenor of right than of a permissive intervenor." Id. at 1185.

The Ninth Circuit, as articulated in County of Orange v. Air California, 799 F.2d 535, 537 (9th Cir.1986), cert. denied sub nom. Irvine v. County of Orange, 480 U.S. 946, 107 S.Ct. 1605, 94 L.Ed.2d 791 (1987); California ex rel. Van De Kamp v. Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, 792 F.2d 779, 781 (9th Cir.1986); and United States v. $129,374 in U.S. Currency 769 F.2d 583, 585 (9th Cir.1985), cert. denied sub nom. Geiger v. United States, 474 U.S. 1086, 106 S.Ct. 863, 88 L.Ed.2d 901 (1986), deploys an abuse of discretion standard for the timeliness prong of the intervention of right requirements, and reviews de novo the remaining Rule 24(a)(2) factors. We take Justice Brennan's admonition to heart, and adopt the Ninth Circuit's standard of review in Rule 24(a) cases.

A.

According to Triax, 724 F.2d at 1228, in determining whether an intervention is timely, a court will consider the following factors: (1) the point to which the suit has progressed; (2) the purpose for which intervention is sought; (3) the length of time preceding the application during which the proposed intervenor knew or reasonably should have known of his interest in the case; (4) the prejudice to the original parties due to the proposed intervenor's failure, after he or she knew or reasonably should have known of his or her interest in the case, to apply promptly for intervention; and (5) the existence of unusual circumstances militating against or in favor of intervention. See also Michigan Association for Retarded Citizens v. Smith, 657 F.2d 102, 105 (6th Cir.1981). As mentioned above, a trial court's decision with respect to the timeliness of a motion to intervene is reviewed under an abuse of discretion standard. Bradley v. Milliken, 828 F.2d 1186, 1191 (6th Cir.1987). Timeliness should be evaluated in the context of all relevant circumstances. Id.

One of the implicit bases for the district court's denial of intervention below is that the motion was untimely, since "remedial measures" were "in place and well underway," and to grant the motion would prejudice the rights of the existing parties. Opinion at Joint Appendix p. 421. We are unconvinced by this rationale. It was precisely the district court's remedy--the October 1985 Order restricting admission of state prisoners to state reception centers--that triggered Metro's clear interest in the action. The district court cannot then turn around and deny intervention because the action is in the "remedial" stages. The court logically could not mean to suggest that Metro should have intervened before its October 1985 Order outlining the remedy: Metro had no way of knowing in advance that the court was going to select the precise remedy that it did, and that its own interest would be so affected. We cannot demand of potential intervenors that degree of prescience. Indeed, Metro, through the Sheriff...

To continue reading

Request your trial
169 cases
  • United States v. City of Detroit
    • United States
    • U.S. Court of Appeals — Sixth Circuit
    • April 8, 2013
    ... ... Grubbs v. Norris, 870 F.2d 343, 34546 (6th Cir.1989). The district court provided substantial grounds for denying intervention. As to the first factor, ... ...
  • Purnell v. City of Akron
    • United States
    • U.S. Court of Appeals — Sixth Circuit
    • February 13, 1991
    ... ... Jansen v. City of Cincinnati, 904 F.2d 336 (6th Cir.1990); Grubbs v. Norris, 870 F.2d 343 (6th Cir.1989). Rule 24(a)(2) 4 has been interpreted as providing a three-pronged test for determining an individual's ... ...
  • Michigan State AFL-CIO v. Miller
    • United States
    • U.S. Court of Appeals — Sixth Circuit
    • January 7, 1997
    ... ... 95-1858 ...         Before: WELLFORD, NORRIS, and DAUGHTREY, Circuit Judges ...         NORRIS, J., delivered the opinion of the court, in which WELLFORD, J., joined. DAUGHTREY, J ... In Grubbs v. Norris, 870 F.2d 343 (6th Cir.1989), we held that a proposed intervenor ... Page 1254 ... must have a "direct and substantial" interest in the ... ...
  • Altier v. Worley Catastrophe Response, LLC
    • United States
    • U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Louisiana
    • January 18, 2012
    ... ... Id. at 529 (citing Grubbs v. Norris , 870 F.2d 343, 345 (6th Cir. 1989); Holland v. Sterling Enters., Inc. , 777 F.2d 1288, 1293 (7th Cir. 1985); McDonald v. E.J. Lavino Co ... ...
  • Request a trial to view additional results
1 books & journal articles
  • Creating Space For Community Representation in Police Reform Litigation
    • United States
    • Georgetown Law Journal No. 109-3, February 2021
    • February 1, 2021
    ...absent party, then she or he is not adequately represented.’” (f‌irst quoting Grutter, 188 F.3d at 400; and then quoting Grubbs v. Norris, 870 F.2d 343, 347 (6th Cir. 1989))). 163. See Citizens for Balanced Use v. Mont. Wilderness Ass’n, 647 F.3d 893, 898 (9th Cir. 2011) (detailing the Nint......

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT