Pigford v. Johanns

• Decision Date: 15 July 2005
• Docket Number: No. 04-5171.,No. 04-5172.,04-5171.,04-5172.
• Citation: 416 F.3d 12
• Parties: Timothy C. PIGFORD et al., Appellants v. Mike JOHANNS, Secretary, The United States Department of Agriculture, Appellee Cecil Brewington et al., Appellants v. Mike Johanns, Secretary, The United States Department of Agriculture, Appellee.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — District of Columbia Circuit

416 F.3d 12

Timothy C. PIGFORD et al., Appellants v. Mike JOHANNS, Secretary, The United States Department of Agriculture, Appellee Cecil Brewington et al., Appellants v. Mike Johanns, Secretary, The United States Department of Agriculture, Appellee.

No. 04-5171.

No. 04-5172.

United States Court of Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit.

Argued March 14, 2005.

Decided July 15, 2005.

Appeals from the United States District Court for the District of Columbia (No. 97cv01978) (No. 98cv01693).

Alexander J. Pires, Jr. argued the cause for the appellants.

Howard S. Scher, Attorney, United States Department of Justice, argued the cause for the appellee. Peter D. Keisler, Assistant Attorney General, United States Department of Justice, Kenneth L. Wainstein, United States Attorney, and Robert M. Loeb, Attorney, United States Department of Justice, were on brief.

Before: SENTELLE, HENDERSON and ROGERS, Circuit Judges.

Opinion for the court filed by Circuit Judge KAREN LECRAFT HENDERSON.

Separate opinion concurring in part and dissenting in part filed by Circuit Judge ROGERS.

KAREN LECRAFT HENDERSON, Circuit Judge.

This appeal arises from a longstanding discrimination action by black farmers against the United States Department of Agriculture (Department) alleging racial discrimination in the administration of federally-funded credit and benefit programs. The appellants are farmers whose discrimination claims were denied in adjudications conducted pursuant to a Consent Decree and whose petitions for review of the adverse adjudications were rejected as untimely because they were filed after the stipulated deadlines that the parties negotiated and the court approved in a Stipulation and Order (S & O). The appellants challenge the district court's denial of their motions for relief from the stipulated deadlines under Fed.R.Civ.P. 60(b)(5) and the court's inherent equitable authority. Because the court did not abuse its discretion in denying the motions, we affirm its judgment.

I.

In 1997 a class of black farmers filed this action in the district court alleging racial discrimination in violation of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, 15 U.S.C. §§ 1691 et seq.¹ On April 14, 1999 the district court entered the Consent Decree which established a two-track system for resolving the individual class members' claims. Pigford v. Glickman, 185 F.R.D. 82 (D.D.C.1999), affirmed, 206 F.3d 1212 (D.C.Cir.2000). Under Track A, a class member with little or no documentary evidence could submit his claim to an adjudicator and obtain payment of $50,000 and forgiveness of debt owed the Department if he proved discrimination by substantial evidence. Such a claimant "has a fairly low burden of proof but his recovery is limited." Id. at 96. Track B, by contrast, set no dollar cap on a claimant's recovery but the claimant must prove discrimination by a preponderance of the evidence, "a higher burden of proof." Id. A claimant in either track could file a petition for review of an adverse decision by the adjudicator with an independent monitor who "shall direct the adjudicator to reexamine the claim if he determines that `a clear and manifest error has occurred' that is `likely to result in a fundamental miscarriage of justice.'" Id. at 97 (quoting Consent Decree ¶ 12(b)(iii), at 21).

Because the Consent Decree provided no timetable for seeking review by the monitor, the parties negotiated filing deadlines which are set out in the S & O entered by the district court on July 14, 2000. Under the S & O any claimant who had received an adverse adjudicator decision as of the date of the S & O had 120 days from that date (i.e., by November 13, 2000) to file a petition with the monitor. Any claimant who received an adverse decision after the S & O's date had 120 days from the date of the adjudication to file a petition. The S & O expressly recites "No extensions of these deadlines will be granted for any reason." Id.

On October 31, 2000 the claimants' class counsel filed a motion seeking to "redesign" the "unworkable" petition filing process, noting that as of that date counsel had filed petitions on behalf of only 297 of the 3,873 claimants requesting filing assistance. Pls.' Mot. for Expedited Hearing at 7, 3-4 (filed Oct. 31, 2000). Following a conference with the parties the district court issued an order on November 8, 2000 directing that, in lieu of a completed petition for each of the claimants, counsel could satisfy the November 13, 2000 deadline by submitting a "Register of Petitions" (Register) which simply listed the name and claim number of each claimant who had sought counsel's assistance in filing a petition for review of an adverse decision issued as of the S & O date. Pigford v. Glickman, C.A. Nos. 97-1978, 98-1693, 2000 WL 34292618 (D.D.C. filed Nov. 8, 2000). The court explained that, while "counsel should be held to the commitments to which they agreed," nonetheless "counsel's failings should not be visited on their clients." Id. at 3, 4, 2000 WL 34292618, at *1. The court further directed that class counsel file 400 of the Register's petitions by December 15, 2000 and another 400 by the 15th of each month thereafter up to a final filing date of May 15, 2001. The order recited: "Under no circumstances shall the Monitor accept supporting materials or withdrawals after May 15, 2001." Id. at 5, 2000 WL 34292618, at *3. In effect, the court doubled the stipulated time to file a petition for review of an adjudication decided as of the date of the S & O.

On March 15, 2001 the appellants filed a motion for an order suspending the May 15, 2001 deadline. The district court held a status conference and on April 27, 2001 issued an order directing "that all deadlines set forth in the Court's Order of November 8, 2000, are suspended until further order of the Court" pending a scheduled meeting on May 1, 2001 between class counsel and outside lawyers "who might be able to assemble a team of pro bono lawyers to assist class counsel on an emergency basis." Pigford v. Veneman, 144 F.Supp.2d 16, 20 (D.D.C.2001). In addition, the court ordered that if, after the May 1 meeting, class counsel decided additional time was necessary they should file a motion for extension no later than May 4, 2001 setting out a "realistic" filing schedule.

After the pro bono meeting the appellants proposed extending the filing deadline to September 15, 2001 and the district court so ordered on May 15, 2001, finding the new deadline "both realistic and reasonable" in light of the "impressive commitment made by pro bono counsel to assist Class Counsel." Pigford v. Veneman, 143 F.Supp.2d 28, 30 (D.D.C.2001). The May 15, 2001 order warned that "[u]nder no circumstances ... shall the Monitor accept supporting materials or withdrawals that are filed after September 15, 2001." Id. at 31. Class counsel, with pro bono assistance, succeeded in filling all of the remaining petitions by the new deadline.

On July 19, 2002 class counsel filed a motion seeking relief under Fed.R.Civ.P. 60(b)(5) or the court's inherent equitable authority on behalf of 387 claimants whose review petitions had been rejected as untimely. On June 2, 2003 the district court denied the motion, concluding there were no changed circumstances that justified modifying the S & O deadlines (as amended). Pigford v. Veneman, 265 F.Supp.2d 41 (D.D.C.2003). The claimants moved for reconsideration, which the district court denied on March 10, 2004. Pigford v. Veneman, 307 F.Supp.2d 43 (D.D.C.2004). This appeal followed.

II.

The appellants comprise two groups of late-filing claimants: (1) those represented by class counsel, now numbering 92, and some 208 others who either proceeded pro se or were represented by lawyers unaffiliated with class counsel. Class counsel argues on behalf of each group that the district court erred in denying relief from the filing deadlines under either Rule 60(b)(5) or its inherent equitable power. We review the district court's decision whether to modify a consent order, either under Fed.R.Civ.P. 60(b)(5) or pursuant to its inherent authority, for abuse of discretion. See Rufo v. Inmates of Suffolk County Jail, 502 U.S. 367, 389, 112 S.Ct. 748, 116 L.Ed.2d 867 (1992) (Rule 60(b)); Shepherd v. Am. Broad. Cos., 62 F.3d 1469, 1475 (D.C.Cir.1995) (inherent authority). We conclude the district court did not abuse its discretion in denying the appellants' motion for relief.

A. Class Counsel Petitions

The district court denied the appellants' motion for relief as to the 92 petitions filed late by class counsel because the appellants failed to demonstrate "changed circumstances" to warrant modifying the S & O schedule under Rule 60(b)(5), which provides in relevant part: "On motion and upon such terms as are just, the court may relieve a party or a party's legal representative from a final judgment, order, or proceeding for the following reasons: ... (5) ... it is no longer equitable that the judgment should have prospective application ...." The appellants challenge the court's Rule 60(b)(5) decision on two grounds. We address each in turn.

First, the appellants assert the district court incorrectly invoked Rule 60(b)(5) because the rule governs only orders that are final.² The appellants contend that the S & O was not a final order and that therefore the court should have decided whether to grant relief solely under its inherent equitable authority. See Envtl. Defense Fund, Inc. v. Costle, 636 F.2d 1229, 1240 (D.C.Cir.1980) ("The power of a District Court sitting as a court of equity to modify the terms of a settlement agreement it previously adopted cannot be drawn into question."). As a practical matter, it makes little difference whether the district court resolved the motion under Rule 60 or under its equitable authority as the standard for each is substantially the same. Compare Rufo v. Inmates of Suffolk County Jail, 502 U.S. 367, 393, 112 S.Ct. 748, 116 L.Ed.2d 867 (1992) (u...