Lawrence v. Intl Bro of Teamster

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CONCLUSION 81,7('67$7(6&28572)$33($/6 6LQFHWKH³XQLTXHFLUFXPVWDQFHV´UXOHGRHVQRWDSSO\ZH GHFOLQH WR KHDU /DZUHQFH¶V DSSHDO LQDVPXFK DV /DZUHQFH )257+(6,;7+&,5&8,7 ILOHGKLVQRWLFHRIDSSHDOWZRGD\VODWH:H$)),50WKH BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB GLVWULFWFRXUW¶VGHQLDORI/DZUHQFH¶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$SSHDOIURPWKH8QLWHG6WDWHV'LVWULFW&RXUW Hollins. See Frazier v. United States, No. 97-6338, 2000 WL IRUWKH1RUWKHUQ'LVWULFWRI2KLRDW7ROHGR 658072 (6th Cir. May 9, 2000). In Frazier, we dismissed an 1R ²-DPHV*&DUU'LVWULFW-XGJH attempt by counsel to blame the tardiness of his client’s habeas petition on a clerk who allegedly provided the attorney $UJXHG -DQXDU\  with improper filing information. Id. at *1. As we explained, "this court has not subscribed to the Eleventh Circuit’s lenient 'HFLGHGDQG)LOHG )HEUXDU\ interpretation of the ‘unique circumstances’ exception." Id. %HIRUH 1(/621DQG&/$<&LUFXLW-XGJHV +$<1(6 Second, prior to Osternak, we interpreted Thomson’s 'LVWULFW-XGJH holding this way: "[An] appeal would be considered timely because the appellant had done something which would have BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB extended the time for appeal if properly done, and relied on the district court's statement that it was done properly." &2816(/ Denley v. Shearson/Am. Express, Inc., 733 F.2d 39, 42 (6th Cir. 1984) (emphasis added). Although one could attempt to $5*8('   7HUU\ / +RUG $GD 2KLR IRU $SSHOODQW interpret "district court" very broadly, to do so would strain )UHGHULFN * &ORSSHUW -U &/233(57 /$7$1,&. the meaning of "district court." Clerks and court personnel 6$87(5  :$6+%851 &ROXPEXV 2KLR 'LDQD 6 work for the district court, they are not the district court. %URZQ/2*27+(7,63(1&( '2//'D\WRQ2KLRIRU $SSHOOHHV  21 %5,()   7HUU\ / +RUG $GD 2KLR IRU Third, the Supreme Court has only applied the "unique $SSHOODQW  )UHGHULFN * &ORSSHUW -U &/233(57 circumstances" doctrine in four cases. See Osternak, 489 /$7$1,&.6$87(5 :$6+%851&ROXPEXV2KLR U.S. 169, Wolfsohn v. Hankin, 376 U.S. 203 (1964); 'LDQD6%URZQ-RKQ5'ROO/2*27+(7,63(1&( Thompson, 375 U.S. 384; Harris Truck Lines, Inc. v. Cherry '2//'D\WRQ2KLRIRU$SSHOOHHV Meat Packers, Inc., 371 U.S. 215 (1962). Each of these cases BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB involved mistaken court rulings or orders rather than poor advice from a court clerk. See Osternak, 489 U.S. at 178; 23,1,21 Wolfsohn, 376 U.S. at 203-04; Thompson, 375 U.S. at 385-87; BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB Harris Truck Lines, 371 U.S. at 216-17.

&/$<&LUFXLW-XGJH3ODLQWLII&DUO/DZUHQFHDSSHDOVWKH Fourth, limiting the phrase "judicial officer" to judges GHQLDORIKLVUHTXHVWIRUUHOLHIIURPMXGJPHQWSXUVXDQWWR)HG makes sense because "a formal order or ruling (1) generates 5&LY3 E

IROORZLQJDQRUGHURIVXPPDU\MXGJPHQW the highest level of justifiable reliance, and (2) raises virtually DJDLQVW/DZUHQFHLQKLVEUHDFKRIGXW\RIIDLUUHSUHVHQWDWLRQ no possibility of evidentiary problems for appellate courts FODLPDULVLQJXQGHU 86&†:H$)),50 faced with applying the exception." Moore, 100 F.3d at 164. Thus, policy and precedent each point strongly against the lenient "unique circumstances" rule that Lawrence would have this Court adopt.

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only where a party has performed an act which, if properly  %$&.*5281' done, would postpone the deadline for filing his appeal and has received specific assurance by a judicial officer that this /DZUHQFHZRUNHGDVDWUXFNGULYHUIRU'XII7UXFN/LQH act has been properly done." Osterneck v. Ernst & Whitney, ,QF DQG LWV VXFFHVVRU 2. 7UXFNLQJ &RPSDQ\ ³2.´

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/DZUHQFHY,QW¶O%KGRI With one exception, every circuit to have considered the 7HDPVWHUV,1R  86$SS/(;,6DW issue has found that the phrase "judicial officer" in Osterneck  WK&LU-DQ

7KH,QWHUQDWLRQDO%URWKHUKRRG refers only to judges. See, e.g. Rezzonico v. H & R Block, RI 7HDPVWHUV &KDXIIHXUV :DUHKRXVHPHQ DQG +HOSHUV RI Inc., 182 F.3d 144, 152 (2d Cir. 1999) ("[S]tatements by a $PHULFD ³,%7´

 DQG LWV /RFDO  ZHUH WKH H[FOXVLYH member of the clerk's office staff are not official judicial EDUJDLQLQJDJHQWVIRUHPSOR\HHVRI2.7UXFNLQJ,GDW assurances that qualify as unique circumstances."); Moore v. ,Q -DQXDU\   /DZUHQFH EHJDQ ILOLQJ JULHYDQFHV ZLWK South Carolina Labor Bd., 100 F.3d 162, 164 (D.C. Cir. /RFDO DOOHJLQJWKDW2.IDLOHGWRIROORZWKHFROOHFWLYH 1996) ("This case does not qualify for application of the EDUJDLQLQJDJUHHPHQW ³&%$´

,G/DZUHQFHDOVRFODLPHG unique circumstances doctrine because although the WKDW:LQW]GLVFKDUJHGKLPLQYLRODWLRQRIWKH&%$ZKLFK statements made by the clerk's office staff may constitute UHPDLQHGLQIRUFHDIWHU:LQW]SXUFKDVHG2.,G/DZUHQFH specific assurances, they cannot fairly be characterized as GHPDQGHG WKDW 'HIHQGDQWV SURFHVV WKH JULHYDQFHV RQ KLV official judicial action."); United States v. Heller, 957 F.2d EHKDOIDQGVHFXUHKLVUHLQVWDWHPHQWDORQJZLWKEDFNSD\DQG 26, 29 (1st Cir. 1992) ("We understand the term ‘judicial EHQHILWV,G,QKLVFRPSODLQW/DZUHQFHFODLPHG'HIHQGDQWV officer’ in this context to mean a judge, not an employee in OHGKLPWREHOLHYHWKH\ZHUHSURFHVVLQJKLVJULHYDQFHVZKHQ the office of the clerk."); Sonicraft, Inc. v. NLRB, 814 F.2d LQUHDOLW\WKH\WRRNQRDFWLRQ,GDW 385, 387 (7th Cir. 1987) (reasoning that "judicial officers" must mean judges because "subordinate employees of the 2Q'HFHPEHU /DZUHQFHILOHGDFRPSODLQWLQWKH judiciary have no authority to waive congressional limitations &RXUWRI&RPPRQ3OHDVLQ$OOHQ&RXQW\2KLRDOOHJLQJWKDW on judicial power"). WKH ,QWHUQDWLRQDO %URWKHUKRRG RI 7HDPVWHUV &KDXIIHXUV :DUHKRXVHPHQDQG+HOSHUVRI$PHULFD ,%7

VRPHRILWV In contrast to the weight of the authority, the Eleventh LQGLYLGXDO RIILFHUV DQG 6WHYHQ :DLWPDQ 3UHVLGHQW RI Circuit has "decided that the unique circumstances doctrine 7HDPVWHUV /RFDO 8QLRQ 1R  PLVKDQGOHG HOHYHQ may apply where the appellant is lulled by assurances from JULHYDQFHV/DZUHQFHILOHGDJDLQVWKLVHPSOR\HU'HIHQGDQWV the clerk’s office instead of the district court itself." Hollins UHPRYHG WKH FDVH WR IHGHUDO FRXUW  2Q -XO\    WKH v. Dep’t of Corr., 191 F.3d 1324, 1328 (11th Cir. 1999). In GLVWULFW FRXUW JUDQWHG 'HIHQGDQWV¶ PRWLRQV WR GLVPLVV Hollins, counsel relied on a clerk’s office electronic docket /DZUHQFH ILOHG D WLPHO\ DSSHDO RQ $XJXVW     7KLV &RXUW DIILUPHG WKH ORZHU FRXUW¶V UXOLQJ DV WR IRXU RI WKH system to determine, incorrectly, that the court had not yet JULHYDQFHV EXW UHYHUVHG DV WR WKH UHPDLQLQJ VHYHQ 6HH filed a final order. Id. /DZUHQFH,86/(;,6 Even assuming Hollins did not reflect an extreme minority 2Q-XO\WKHGLVWULFWFRXUWRUGHUHGWKDWLWZRXOG position, there are four reasons to firmly conclude that the QRWDFFHSWKDUGFRSLHVRISOHDGLQJVXQOHVVSURYLGHGIRULQLWV "unique circumstances" doctrine does not apply here. First, (OHFWURQLF3ROLFLHVDQG3URFHGXUHV0DQXDO7KHUHDIWHUWKH albeit in an unpublished opinion, we have already rejected

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