Supreme Court of the United States

Keene Corp. v. United States

May 24, 1993508 U.S. 200

Summary

Justice Souter's opinion, joined by Chief Justice Rehnquist and Justices White, Blackmun, O'Connor, Scalia, Kennedy, and Thomas, affirmed the dismissal of Keene's claims under 28 U.S.C. § 1500. Jurisdiction depends on the circumstances when the Court of Federal Claims complaint is filed, and the statute bars claims based on substantially the same operative facts as an action then pending elsewhere, at least when the requested relief overlaps, despite differences in legal theory. The Court found no new rule requiring retroactivity analysis and expressly rejected Brown and Hossein insofar as they disregarded the time-of-filing rule. Justice Stevens dissented alone, arguing that dismissal of the other action before adjudication removes the statutory bar and that longstanding precedent and litigant reliance supported that interpretation.

Holding

  • The time at which § 1500 jurisdiction is determined.. Section 1500 bars jurisdiction when the plaintiff has a qualifying action pending in another court at the time the Court of Federal Claims complaint is filed; subsequent dismissal of that action does not cure the defect.
  • Whether different legal theories prevent claims from being treated as the same under § 1500.. Claims based on substantially the same operative facts fall within § 1500, at least when the requested relief overlaps, even if the actions rely on different legal theories that cannot both be pursued in the Court of Federal Claims.
  • Whether the Court needed to consider prospective-only application.. No retroactivity analysis was necessary because dismissal of Keene's claims followed well-settled law rather than a new principle of law.

Docket 92-166

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