Mooneyham v. BOARD OF CHIROPRACTIC EX'RS

• Decision Date: 11 May 2001
• Citation: 802 So.2d 200
• Parties: E. Lamar MOONEYHAM v. STATE BOARD OF CHIROPRACTIC EXAMINERS et al.
• Court: Alabama Supreme Court

802 So.2d 200

E. Lamar MOONEYHAM v. STATE BOARD OF CHIROPRACTIC EXAMINERS et al.

1991825.

Supreme Court of Alabama.

May 11, 2001.

Bradley R. Byrne and Jannea S. Rogers of Adams & Reese, L.L.P., Mobile; and Roy E. Kadel, Mobile, for appellant.

James S. Ward of Corley, Moncus & Ward, P.C., Birmingham; and Alyce S. Robertson, Office of the Attorney General, for appellees State Board of Chiropractic Examiners, Stephen L. Below, E. Rockford McCord, O.E. Corfman, Benjamine F. Hooker, Donald B. Williams, Lyle W. Cole, Gregory A. Kuhlmxanm, James A. May, John L. Campbell, and John L. Stump.

Charles Campbell and Bill Clifford, Office of the Attorney General, for appellee Sidney Sakwa.

Mark A. Newell and Jeremy P. Taylor of Janecky Newell, P.C., Mobile, for appellee E. Rockford McCord and O.E. Corfman.

BROWN, Justice.

E. Lamar Mooneyham appeals from the Baldwin Circuit Court's judgment dismissing his claims against the State Board of Chiropractic Examiners ("the Board") and certain Board members, including Stephen L. Below; E. Rockford McCord; O.E. Corfman; Benjamin F. Hooker; Donald B. Williams; Lyle W. Cole; Gregory A. Kuhlman; James A. May; John L. Campbell; John L. Stump; and Sydney Sakwa. Mooneyham's claims include allegations of defamation; tortious interference with business relations; malicious prosecution; conspiracy; and a violation of his federal constitutional rights (brought pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983). The claims arise out of the Board's unsuccessful attempt to take disciplinary action against him. The Board and the individual defendants timely moved to dismiss Mooneyham's claims, pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6), Ala.R.Civ.P., for failing to state claims for which relief could be granted. Specifically, the defendants argued that they were all entitled to various forms of immunity. The circuit court granted the motions. We affirm the judgment of dismissal.

I.

According to his complaint, Mooneyham has been licensed to practice chiropractic in Alabama since 1990. During that time, he alleges, he has formed business relationships with certain insurance companies. He alleges that those relationships involve performing "utilization reviews" of other Alabama chiropractors. Mooneyham also claims that he has frequently testified as an expert witness in civil proceedings against other Alabama chiropractors. According to Mooneyham's complaint, much of his work has been adverse to the interests of certain Board members or their families and associates.

On February 8, 1995, the Board, by way of an administrative complaint, charged Mooneyham with six violations of various laws, rules, or regulations applicable to the chiropractic profession. The Board ultimately found Mooneyham guilty of four violations and imposed punishment that included a $14,600 fine and a revocation of his license to practice chiropractic in Alabama. The adjudication and judgment passed upon votes by the defendants Below; McCord; Corfman; Hooker; Williams; Cole; Kuhlman; May; Campbell; Stump; and Sakwa. Mooneyham's complaint alleges that the sanctions imposed on him were among the most severe sanctions ever imposed by the Board for any misconduct, including that seen in the most serious cases. Mooneyham further alleged that after August 6, 1997, Hooker, Williams, Cole, Kuhlman, May, and Sakwa maliciously, willfully, wantonly, and in bad faith authorized the communication of the Board's findings to specific third parties, including the State of Florida and the Federation of Chiropractic Licensing Boards, and made those findings a matter of public record.

On August 12, 1997, Mooneyham appealed the Board's findings and its punishment order to the Montgomery Circuit Court. After hearing evidence, that court found that Mooneyham's disciplinary action had been taken, and the punishment imposed, in retaliation for his performing utilization reviews for insurance companies and for the adverse testimony he had given in civil proceedings against certain Alabama chiropractors. The court concluded that the Board's conduct had been arbitrary and capricious, and it ordered the reinstatement of Mooneyham's license, a reversal of the fine, and a dismissal of all other proceedings against Mooneyham. The Court of Civil Appeals, on February 26, 1999, affirmed the circuit court's order, without an opinion. State Bd. of Chiropractic Exam'rs v. Mooneyham (No. 2980001), 776 So.2d 223 (Ala.Civ.App.1999) (table). The Board did not petition this Court for certiorari review.

On August 5, 1999, Mooneyham initiated the present lawsuit in the Baldwin Circuit Court, against the Board and certain members. The Board and those named members filed motions to dismiss; they offered several grounds on which they contended the complaint should be dismissed, including the defenses of sovereign immunity and quasi-judicial immunity. On May 19, 2000, the circuit court granted the motions and dismissed all of Mooneyham's claims.

We are mindful that "[m]otions to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6) should be granted sparingly, and [that] such a dismissal is proper only when it appears beyond a doubt that the ... plaintiff can prove no set of facts in support of the claim which would entitle the ... plaintiff to relief." Quality Homes Co. v. Sears, Roebuck & Co., 496 So.2d 1, 2 (Ala.1986). We also recognize the well-established principle that "[m]atters outside the pleadings should never be considered in deciding whether to grant a [Rule] 12(b)(6) motion." Hales v. First Nat'l Bank of Mobile, 380 So.2d 797, 800 (Ala. 1980).

As we have said, Mooneyham has appealed from the circuit court's judgment dismissing his five claims against the Board and the named members. Although the defense of immunity may be properly raised as to each of Mooneyham's claims, we begin our review as to Mooneyham's defamation and conspiracy claims at an earlier analytical stage. We conclude that those claims are barred, without regard to the defendants' immunity defenses. As to the remaining claims, we conclude that the defendants enjoy absolute or qualified immunity from suit and that the dismissal, therefore, was proper.

II.

The first issue we consider is whether Mooneyham can prevail on his defamation claim under any imaginable circumstances, considering the facts pleaded in his complaint. We are particularly interested in Mooneyham's allegations that the Board found him guilty of four violations of Alabama's professional code of conduct for chiropractors. We note that Mooneyham alleged as a fact that the Board's adjudication of his disciplinary matter occurred before the time when he alleges certain members of the Board authorized communications to third parties notifying those third persons of the conclusion and result of the Board's proceedings against him.

Mooneyham's complaint indicates that he has essentially pleaded that the Board communicated accurate and true information —at the time the alleged communications were authorized and at the time they were made, the Board had made its ruling and that ruling had not yet been reversed by the Montgomery Circuit Court. It is well established that truth is an absolute defense against a defamation claim. Drill Parts & Serv. Co. v. Joy Mfg. Co., 619 So.2d 1280, 1289 (Ala.1993); Foley v. State Farm Fire & Cas. Ins. Co., 491 So.2d 934, 937 (Ala.1986); and Liberty Loan Corp. of Gadsden v. Mizell, 410 So.2d 45, 49 (Ala.1982). Because Mooneyham's defamation claim alleges a truthful communication, he cannot prevail even if we accept his allegations as true. Therefore, the trial court properly dismissed this claim against the defendants.

III.

We next address the immunity of the Board itself. The Board argues that it is a State agency and that as a State agency it enjoys absolute immunity from any lawsuit. We agree.

Article I, § 14, of the Constitution of 1901, provides: "[T]he State of Alabama shall never be made a defendant in any court of law or equity." With respect to the word "State," we have said:

"This Court has held that `the use of the word "State" in Section 14 was intended to protect from suit only immediate and strictly governmental agencies of the State.' Tallaseehatchie Creek Watershed Conservancy Dist. v. Allred, 620 So.2d 628, 631 (Ala.1993) (quoting Thomas v. Alabama Mun. Elec. Auth., 432 So.2d 470, 480 (Ala.1983)). Thus, we must determine what constitutes an `immediate and strictly governmental agenc[y].' The test for determining whether a legislatively created body is an immediate and strictly governmental agency for purposes of a sovereign-immunity analysis involves an assessment of (1) the character of the power delegated to the body; (2) the relation of the body to the State; and (3) the nature of the function performed by the body. Armory Comm'n of Alabama v. Staudt, 388 So.2d 991, 993 (Ala.1980)."

Rodgers v. Hopper, 768 So.2d 963, 966 (Ala.2000).

The Board of Chiropractic Examiners is a legislatively created body. § 34-24-140, Ala.Code 1975. The Board is authorized to control the licensing of chiropractors, § 34-24-161, and is charged with regulating the chiropractic profession, § 34-24-166. Although the Board may collect certain fees to generate revenue, it is required by law to deposit those funds in the State Treasury, which sets aside those funds for the Board's use. § 34-24-143. Under § 34-24-143, those funds are appropriated to the Board "to defray the expenses incurred" in carrying out the Board's charges.

Our examination of the statutes creating and empowering the Board shows that the Board is a regulatory body that receives its funding from the State. Therefore, we conclude that the Board is a State agency and, consequently, is entitled to § 14 immunity. Because this immunity, when applied to a governmental entity, is absolute, the circuit court properly dismissed all the claims against the Board.

IV.

We now consider the question of immunity for the Board members, who have been sued in both their official and their...