A WIN!!! Does v Swearingen (EPF I)
The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals just came out with their opinion in Does v. Swearingen (Ex Post Facto I) and IT’S A WINNER! The case is getting sent back to the District Court and the Plaintiffs will have their day in court.
I am sharing the opinion below for your reading pleasure, without having the opportunity to read through and digest it myself.
Trust that a deep dive and further celebration will come shortly!
EXTRA SPECIAL THANKS to the amazing lawyers who are litigating this case!
Does v Swearingen – 11th Circuit Opinion
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It is sad though that it took 4 years for a federal court to grant the plaintiffs their RIGHT to have the courts address their issues. Sending it back to the state courts for consideration is the easy way out. They should have taken the case up themselves, since the rights of the plaintiffs were already violated by that state.
I think you are confused, Gerald. The case was not “sent back to the state courts for consideration”. It was never in the state courts. It was originally filed in the FEDERAL COURT (US District Court for the Southern District of Florida).
Which actually increases my frustrations with the system. Since it is a federal claim, there is no reason why the 11th Circuit shouldn’t just take up the case now, while the facts are before the Court. And there was absolutely no guidance given in the opinion on how the District Court should weigh the claims. They have analyzed the claims sufficiently enough to bar some from going forward. They should also decide the merits of each remaining claim. They know that the case will come before them again.
Gerald, because the case was dismissed on a motion to dismiss. The District court did not even hear or consider the merits of the case. The issue and record before the appellate court is whether the case was properly dismissed on the statute of limitations issue.
Under Rule 10 of the Federal Rules of Appellate procedure, an appellate court is limited to the pleadings filed in the trial court, the transcripts of any hearing and trial, and the docket. In the current case it didn’t make it beyond consideration of the Motion to Dismiss. There’s nothing on record showing the testimony and examination of all the experts that were retained to support the plaintiff’s argument and all the other very important pieces of evidence that makes up the case.
Would you really want an appellate court, sue sponte, to just say, “we don’t need to hear about the substance of this case or from any of the parties or their witnesses, we are going to make a decision based on our preconceived opinions.”? I sure wouldn’t!
I suspect your frustration with the system is largely based on a misunderstanding of how the system works.
A misunderstanding of how the system works? Regardless of how the case is decided in the District Court, the losing side is going to appeal, and the it will be back in the hands of the Circuit Court, but more years will have passed with no final decision. And if the state wins in the District Court, the Circuit Court of Appeals merely has to affirm the decision. All they did here is pass the buck.
It’s not passing the buck for an appeals court to send a case down to trial court for trial. That’s just how it works.
Either side may prevail at trial. Then the other side may appeal. Then the appeals court may either uphold or reverse. But you know all this, right?
You seem to be predicting the outcome of both the trial and the appeal of the trial. But we have no basis to do so.
Facts aren’t before the court yet, only allegations. There still needs to be a trial— appeals court can’t run that.
I read it and wept.
The judges see the injuries!
They laid it out clearly.
Thank You FAC!
Thank You Attorneys!
Thanks to all the donations!
Let’s get this across the finish line!
YAY!!!!!!!!
A good day for the cause!
Thanks Ronnie, and the legal team, for all the hard work you put in!!!!
Hurray!!! I hope……
Noticed this is an opinion to PUBLISH, which makes it even better. Great job to all involved!
This is awesome news! Keep up the great work FAC, this is BIG!