Torres v. Oakland Scavenger Co. et al. (487 U.S. 312)
U.S. Supreme Court · decided June 24, 1988 · Supreme Court Database (Spaeth)
- Citation
- 487 U.S. 312 · 108 S. Ct. 2405
- Decided
- June 24, 1988
- Term
- October Term 1987
- Vote
- 8–1
- Majority author
- Justice Marshall
- Issue area
- Judicial Power
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome
- Petitioning party lost
- Ideological direction
- Conservative
Opinion excerpt
Justice Marshall delivered the opinion of the Court. This case presents the question whether a federal appellate court has jurisdiction over a party who was not specified in the notice of appeal in accordance with Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 3(c). I Petitioner Jose Torres is one of 16 plaintiffs who intervened in an employment discrimination suit against respondent Oakland Scavenger Co. (hereafter respondent) after receiving notice of the action pursuant to a settlement agreement between respondent and the original plaintiffs. In their complaint, the intervenors purported to proceed not only on their own behalf, but also on behalf of all persons similarly situated. On August 31, 1981, the District Court for the Northern District of California dismissed the complaint pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6) for failure to state a claim warranting relief. 4 Record, Doc. No. 87. A class had not been certified at the time of the dismissal. On September 29, 1981, a notice of appeal was filed in the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. The Court of Appeals reversed the District Court’s dismissal and remanded the case for further proceedings. Bonilla v. Oakland Scavenger Co., 697 F. 2d 1297 (1982). Both the notice of appeal and the order of the Court of Appeals omitted petitioner’s name. It is undisputed that the omission in the notice of appeal was due to a…
Excerpt of a 25,184-character opinion. The full text and citation network load in the interactive viewer above.