Menocal v. The Geo Group, Inc.
This class action lawsuit was brought on behalf of current and former detainees held at the Aurora Detention Facility, a detention center owned and operated by defendant The GEO Group, Inc. that houses detained immigrants. The district court certified two classes: one alleging that GEO violated the Trafficking Victims Protection Act by forcing detainees to clean its facilities or face steep sanctions, and the other alleging that GEO violated Colorado’s unjust enrichment doctrine by paying participants in its Voluntary Work Program only $1 per day for all hours worked. GEO petitioned the Tenth Circuit for review, and the Tenth Circuit granted the petition.
On behalf of Public Citizen and the National Employment Law Project, we filed an amicus brief in support of the plaintiffs on appeal. Our brief explained that this case is the type of case for which class actions were designed, and that the district court correctly concluded that Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23’s commonality, typicality, predominance, and superiority requirements were met as to each of the two classes. On February 9, 2018, the Tenth Circuit affirmed the district court’s certification of both classes.
On remand, the parties cross-moved for summary judgment. The district court held that the company could not assert “derivative sovereign immunity,” a doctrine that shields contractors from liability when they act pursuant to the government’s lawful instructions. The Tenth Circuit dismissed GEO’s appeal as premature because the district court had not yet entered a final judgment.
The Supreme Court granted review to decide whether a government contractor may immediately appeal a district court order denying “derivative sovereign immunity.” Public Citizen filed an amicus brief supporting the plaintiffs. The brief argued that the phrase “derivative sovereign immunity” is a misnomer, since the contractor’s defense does not stem from the government’s own immunity from suit. It also emphasized that the defense is not comparable to absolute or qualified immunity, which protect discretionary decisions made by government officials.