Judge refuses to reconsider non-dismissal of claims vs Inos, govt

Superior Court Associate Judge David A. Wiseman has denied Gov. Eloy S. Inos’ and the CNMI government’s request for him to reconsider his decision not to dismiss them as parties in Glen Hunter’s Open Government Act lawsuit over the passage of the casino law.

Wiseman said that Inos and the CNMI government have not met their burden to prove that they are entitled to the extraordinary remedy of a motion for reconsideration under the Commonwealth Rules of Civil Procedure.

Wiseman said Inos’ and the CNMI government’s motion is problematic because it requires the court to take their word regarding the law.

He said Inos and the CNMI government do not define “controlling law” or cite any cases that are analogous to this matter.

“In essence, defendants ask that this court take a leap of faith on an untraditional and unproven approach to resolve what appears to be a factual dispute, one more appropriately resolved in a motion for summary judgment,” the judge said.

Wiseman said he is not inclined to grant this motion, particularly not at this stage in the litigation where Hunter has the right to amend his complaint.

Wiseman ordered all parties in the case to attend a case management conference on Jan. 5, 2015, at 1:30pm.

Hunter is suing the government, Inos, the Lottery Commission, Senate President Ralph Torres, House Speaker Joseph Deleon Guerrero, and representatives Rafael Demapan and Felicidad Ogumoro.

Hunter, through counsel Jennifer Dockter, has asked the court to issue a declaratory judgment, explicitly stating that the OGA does, in fact, apply to the Legislature, and that the lawmakers named in the lawsuit are properly before the court for violating their public notice provisions.

The defendants had moved to dismiss the complaint against them, claiming, among other arguments, that the OGA is unconstitutional as it applies to the Legislature, that the alleged violations are not justiciable, and that the legislator defendants are protected by legislative immunity.

Last October, Wiseman issued a decision that dismissed the Lottery Commission as a party in the lawsuit. In the same ruling, Wiseman denied a motion to dismiss Inos and the CNMI government as improper parties in Hunter’s lawsuit.

Wiseman ruled that retaining the Lottery Commission as a party in the case would serve no purpose, as it has not itself violated the OGA provisions.

The judge said while he dismissed the Lottery Commission as an improper party due to its lack of involvement or control over the Legislature, he cannot, in good conscience, dismiss Inos in these circumstances, as the governor became an indispensable party after involving himself in the legislative process by signing the bills into law.

In the same decision, Wiseman denied the CNMI government’s motion to dismiss Hunter’s claims. The judge denied the CNMI Legislative Bureau’s motion to dismiss the claims against Deleon Guerrero, Demapan, and Ogumoro.

Wiseman also denied Senate President Torres’ motion to dismiss the claims against him.

Inos and the CNMI government, through assistant attorney general Reena J. Patel, moved to reconsider Wiseman’s ruling.

Patel argued that there has been a change in the controlling law because “Public Law 18-56, repealed the two laws that serve as the basis for Hunter’s complaint; and therefore, [sic] moots the relief sought against defendants Inos and the Commonwealth.”

In an order Monday denying the motion for reconsideration, Wiseman said “the two laws that serve as the basis for plaintiff’s complaint” are the laws at issue, but, as defendants suggest, the controlling law.

“Whether or not the Legislature repealed the laws at issue have no bearing on the legal standard for how a court should have analyzed defendants’ Rule 12(b)(6) motion,” he said.