Uberoi v. Supreme Court of Florida
- Summarized by Jeffrey Snyder , Bilzin Sumberg Baena Price & Axelrod, LLP
- 8 years 8 months ago
- Citation:
- --- F.3d ----, 15-12636 (11th Cir. Apr. 18, 2016)
- Tag(s):
-
- Ruling:
- District court lacked subject matter jurisdiction over claim under section 525 of the Bankruptcy Code against Florida Supreme Court under Rooker-Feldman doctrine. Federal courts do not generally exercise jurisdiction over enforcement of state bar rules and appellant could have raised alleged inappropriateness of considering bankruptcy petition before Florida Supreme Court in the first instance. Further, sovereign immunity precluded due process claim against Florida Supreme Court. Court did not reach merits of whether section 525(a) in fact prohibits denial of bar admission based on status as a debtor in bankruptcy.
- Procedural context:
- Appeal from dismissal of lawsuit by district court for lack of subject matter jurisdiction.
- Facts:
- Appellant had filed chapter 13 petition in 2007, which was subsequently dismissed for failing to make scheduled plan payments. Upon seeking admission to the Florida Bar in 2010, Board of Bar Examiners recommended conditional admission to Florida Supreme Court, which rejected recommendation and denied appellant admission to the bar based on lack of candor and refusal to repay financial obligations. Appellant sued Florida Supreme Court alleging violation of section 525(a) of the Bankruptcy Code which prohibits a governmental agency from discriminating against a person solely because they are a bankruptcy debtor and due process violation.
- Judge(s):
- Ed Carnes, Hull, and Marcus
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