Background
Robert Lee Strother filed a complaint against several law enforcement officials and a county EMS provider. The district court granted motions to dismiss the complaint against certain defendants, ruling that the claims were barred by the three-year statute of limitations. Strother sought to appeal this order immediately.
The court’s reasoning
The court explained that it may exercise jurisdiction only over final orders under Section twelve hundred and ninety-one of Title twenty-eight of the United States Code, or certain interlocutory and collateral orders under Section twelve hundred and ninety-two and Federal Rule of Civil Procedure fifty-four. The order Strother sought to appeal was neither a final order nor an appealable interlocutory or collateral order. Consequently, the court lacked jurisdiction to hear the appeal.
The order Strother seeks to appeal is neither a final order nor an appealable interlocutory or collateral order.
Per Curiam Opinion
What it means going forward
The dismissal prevents the plaintiff from challenging the statute of limitations ruling until a final judgment is entered in the district court, unless a specific exception for interlocutory orders applies.