National Fair Housing Alliance Inc et al v. A.G. Spanos Construction Inc et al

MOTION for Leave to File Amicus Brief

N.D. Cal.September 2, 2008

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 Motion for Leave to File Amicus Brief - C.A. No. C07-3255-SBA 1 GRACE CHUNG BECKER Acting Assistant Attorney General Civil Rights Division STEVEN H. ROSENBAUM Chief, Housing and Civil Enforcement Section REBECCA B. BOND (CA Bar #202220) Deputy Chief, Housing and Civil Enforcement Section JOSEPH GAETA (RI Bar #6477) Attorney, Housing and Civil Enforcement Section United States Department of Justice 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Northwestern Building, 7th Floor Washington, D.C. 20530 Phone: (202) 353-9062 Fax: (202) 514-1116 Email: joe.gaeta@usdoj.gov Attorneys for Amicus Curiae United States of America IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA NATIONAL FAIR HOUSING ALLIANCE, et al., ) ) Plaintiffs, ) C.A. No. C07-3255-SBA ) v. ) ) Hearing Date: Sept. 23, 2008 A.G. SPANOS CONSTRUCTION, INC., et al. ) Time: 1:00 p.m. ) Dept: Courtroom 3 ) Defendants. ) ____________________________________ ) THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA’S MOTION FOR LEAVE TO FILE AMICUS BRIEF The United States of America hereby moves this Court for leave to file the attached brief (Exhibit A) as amicus curiae to assist the Court in ruling on Defendants’ Motion for Reconsideration. (Doc. 120.) In their motion, Defendants request that this Court reconsider its April 4, 2008 Order denying their motion to dismiss in light of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals subsequent en Case 4:07-cv-03255-SBA Document 130 Filed 09/02/2008 Page 1 of 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 1 HUD has also been charged with providing technical assistance to implement the requirements of Section 804(f)(3)(C), see 42 U.S.C. § 3604(f)(5)(C), and issuing rules to implement the Act. 42 U.S.C. § 3614a. To that end, HUD has issued regulations, 24 C.F.R. §100.205, implementing the accessibility provisions of the Act, and more detailed Fair Housing Accessibility Guidelines. See 56 Fed. Reg. 9472 (Mar. 6, 1991). Motion for Leave to File Amicus Brief - C.A. No. C07-3255-SBA 2 banc decision in Garcia v. Brockway, 526 F.3d 456 (9th Cir. 2008), petition for cert. filed, 2008 WL 3165825 (U.S. Jul. 31, 2008) (No. 08-140). As set forth more fully in our amicus brief, we request that this Court deny Defendants’ motion and affirm its April 4, 2008 Order because Garcia does not address the statute of limitations questions raised in this case. The United States has important enforcement responsibilities under the FHA. For instance, the Attorney General may initiate civil proceedings on behalf of the United States in “pattern or practice” cases, 42 U.S.C. § 3614(a), or on behalf of an aggrieved person, following a determination by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”) of reasonable cause and an election by either the complainant or respondent to a complaint of housing discrimination filed with HUD to proceed in federal court. See 42 U.S.C. § 3612(o).1 Furthermore, under the FHA private litigation is an important supplement to government enforcement. See Trafficante v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., 409 U.S. 205, 211 (1972); 42 U.S.C. § 3616a (authorizing the Secretary of HUD to contract with private, non-profit fair housing organizations to conduct testing, investigation, and litigation under the FHA). Permitting persons to appear as friends of the court through the filing of amicus briefs “can contribute to [a] court's understanding” of the issues involved in a particular lawsuit. Harris v. Pernsley, 820 F.2d 592, 603 (3d Cir. 1987); San Francisco NAACP v. San Francisco Unified School Dist., 59 F. Supp. 2d 1021, 1033 (N.D. Cal. 1999). On September 2, 2008, we attempted to consult with counsel for plaintiffs and defendants regarding the filing of this brief. Counsel for the plaintiff Thomas Keary stated he did not object to the United States’ motion. Counsel for Knickerbocker Properties, Inc., Stephen Walters also represented that he had no objection to the United States’ motion. Counsel for the United States spoke with Thomas Keeling, who represents the A.G. Spanos Defendants, and exchanged Case 4:07-cv-03255-SBA Document 130 Filed 09/02/2008 Page 2 of 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 Motion for Leave to File Amicus Brief - C.A. No. C07-3255-SBA 3 voicemail messages with Shirley Jackson, who represents Defendant Highpoint Village. Neither were able to indicate their clients’ position before the United States filed its motion. The United States further requests that if the Court entertains oral argument from the parties it be allowed to participate. For these reasons, we request the Court to direct the Clerk to file the attached brief. A proposed order is attached as Exhibit B. Respectfully submitted, GRACE CHUNG BECKER Acting Assistant Attorney General Civil Rights Division /s/ Joseph Gaeta (Bar#91362) STEVEN H. ROSENBAUM Chief, Housing and Civil Enforcement Section Civil Rights Division REBECCA B. BOND Deputy Chief JOSEPH GAETA (Bar#91362) Attorney Housing and Civil Enforcement Section Civil Rights Division U.S. Department of Justice 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Northwestern Building, 7th Floor Washington, D.C. 20530 Phone: (202) 353-9062 Fax: (202) 514-1116 Email: joe.gaeta@usdoj.gov Dated: September 2, 2008 Case 4:07-cv-03255-SBA Document 130 Filed 09/02/2008 Page 3 of 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 Motion for Leave to File Amicus Brief - C.A. No. C07-3255-SBA 4 CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I hereby certify that on September 2, 2008, I electronically filed this Motion with the Clerk of the Court using the ECF system which will send notification of such filing to the following: John P. Relman Michael Allen D. Scott Chang Stephen M. Dane Thomas J. Keary Relman & Dane 1225 19th St. NW Suite 600 Washington, DC 20036 202-728-1888 Andrew A. Bassak Shirley Jackson Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP One Embarcadero Center 30th Floor San Francisco, CA 94111-3719 415-291-7400 Thomas Harvey Keeling Lee Roy Pierce, Jr. Freeman, D'Aiuto, Pierce, Gurev, Keeling & Wolf 1818 Grand Canal Boulevard Suite 4 Stockton, CA 95207 209-474-1818 Makesha Antoinette Patterson Stephen Scott Walters Allen Matkins Leck Gamble Mallory & Natsis LLP 3 Embarcadero Center 12th Floor San Francisco, CA 94111 415-273-8407 /s/ Joseph Gaeta Joseph Gaeta Trial Attorney Housing and Civil Enforcement Section Civil Rights Division U.S. Department of Justice - G St. 950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, D.C. 20530 Telephone: (202) 353-9062 Fax: (202) 514-1116 joe.gaeta@usdoj.gov Case 4:07-cv-03255-SBA Document 130 Filed 09/02/2008 Page 4 of 4