Kamen v. Nordberg
Headline: Court declines to review when judges should order immediate review to protect a party’s jury-trial right, leaving conflicting rules for litigants across federal appeals courts.
Holding: The Court refused to take up the case, leaving in place the appeals court’s rule that mandamus to enforce a jury-trial demand is available only when the right is clear and no other remedy exists.
- Maintains conflicting rules on mandamus to enforce jury demands across federal appeals courts.
- Makes immediate review harder in the Seventh Circuit for denied jury-trial demands.
- Leaves uncertainty for shareholders seeking jury trials in investor derivative suits.
Summary
Background
A shareholder in a mutual fund brought a derivative suit (a lawsuit brought on behalf of the fund) against the two companies that run the fund, alleging breach of fiduciary duty under §36(b) of the Investment Company Act of 1940. The district court struck the shareholder’s demand for a jury trial on that claim. The shareholder asked the federal appeals court for a writ of mandamus — an order directing the trial judge to allow a jury — but the Seventh Circuit denied that request, citing its earlier decision in First National Bank of Waukesha v. Warren.
Reasoning
The core question was when an appeals court should use mandamus to protect a claimed right to a jury trial. The Seventh Circuit follows a two-part test: the claimed right must be clear and indisputable, and the petitioner must have no other adequate way to obtain relief. Justice White’s dissent explains that many other appeals courts take a different view and treat mandamus as an appropriate way to review orders denying jury trials, obliging the appeals court to consider the claim’s merits. He also noted possible tension with prior Supreme Court decisions emphasizing protection of the jury-trial right.
Real world impact
Because the Supreme Court declined to review the case, the split among the appeals courts remains. In some circuits, litigants can seek immediate mandamus review when a jury demand is denied; in the Seventh Circuit, they face a higher hurdle and often must wait to raise the issue on appeal after final judgment. That produces continuing uncertainty about when and where a party can secure immediate review to protect a jury trial.
Dissents or concurrances
Justice White would have granted review to resolve the disagreement among circuits and to clarify when mandamus is available to protect the constitutional right to a jury trial.
Opinions in this case:
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