Camacho invites Legislature, OMB, Finance to submit briefs, declarations

Superior Court Associate Judge Joseph N. Camacho yesterday invited the Legislature, the Office of Management and Budget, and the Department of Finance to submit briefs or declarations over the government’s failure to pay a judgment of $35,000 that was entered in 2013 as a settlement of a wrongful death lawsuit.

Camacho expressed concern about the far reaching ramifications of the issues raised in the wrongful death lawsuit filed by couple Timothy Cruz and Jotonia B. Aguon, especially as the plaintiffs call into question issues related to the repeated non-payment of court-ordered judgments in the CNMI, as well as whether the 2016 budget is unconstitutionally unbalanced, which could result in a government shutdown of all non-essential government functions.

Cruz and Aguon are holding a judgment against the government in the amount of $35,000 as a settlement of their lawsuit that they filed in 2012 over the death of their child during delivery at the Commonwealth Health Center.

Cruz and Aguon, through counsel Michael Dotts, filed a motion for an order in aid of judgment that  asked the court to direct the government to pay them the final judgment.

According to Dotts, the government has not ever made even a partial payment despite agreed to a settlement.

Dotts said with the Appropriation and Budget Act of 2016, the court has the power to aid Aguon and Cruz. He asserted, among other things, that the Act vests the governor with “reprogramming authority within the Executive Branch.”

The Office of the Attorney General opposed the motion. Assistant attorney general David Lochabay asserted that the motion is not supported by any authority and should be denied on that ground alone.

Lochabay also asserted that a CNMI Supreme Court previous ruling forbids courts from directly or indirectly ordering payment of judgments for which the Legislature has not appropriated funds. Camacho heard the motion last Nov. 17.

In an order issued yesterday, Camacho invited the Legislature, the Office of Management and Budget, and Finance to file an amicus curiae brief.

Amicus curiae (Friend of the court) refers to a brief filed in court by an entity who is not a party to the case.

Camacho said at the very least, an opportunity should be given to the CNMI Senate, House of Representatives, Office of Management and Budget, and Finance, to be heard on this matter.

Camacho said he is interested in the following issues:

• Whether an order in aid of judgment would be the proper legal mechanism with which to rule that the 2016 budget is unconstitutionally unbalanced.
• If there is any other mechanism for the plaintiffs to seek payment of their judgment against the government, in light of the repeated failure of the Legislature to appropriate for court-ordered judgments.
• Whether the court ordering a payment of a judgment out of the $8,000 highlighted in the 2016 budget, or in the alternative ordering the governor to reprogram funds for the payment of these judgments, is distinguishable from the case of Marine Revitalization Corp.
• Whether a CNMI annual budget is unconstitutionally unbalanced if it does not specifically name the judgments owed by the government.
• If the court does rule that the 2016 budget is unconstitutionally unbalanced, in effect immediately shutting down non-essential government functions, whether there is a mechanism for the court to stay its order to allow the Legislature to pass a supplemental budget.

Any filings, Camacho said, shall be due on or before Jan. 29, 2016.