Buckwalter v. Nevada Board of Medical Examiners, 678 F.3d 737

Dr. Buckwalter, a Nevada-licensed physician since 1997, faced Board of Medical Examiners scrutiny for alleged overprescribing of narcotics.
The Board’s Investigative Committee ordered peer reviews; two reviewers found some conduct fell below professional standards.
Edward Cousineau, a Board member, filed an administrative complaint seeking summary suspension of Buckwalter’s prescribing authority.
An emergency ex parte teleconference on November 12, 2008, resulted in summary suspension without Buckwalter’s notice or participation; a full hearing was scheduled.
Settlement negotiations followed; Buckwalter and the Board deferred the hearing, Buckwalter eventually did not withdraw the stipulation, and no final settlement was reached.
Buckwalter filed a 42 U.S.C. § 1983 suit in November 2010 alleging due-process violations; the district court dismissed based on absolute immunity and Younger abstention; Buckwalter timely appealed.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether Board Members have absolute immunity for summary suspension	Buckwalter argues summary suspension is nonjudicial and not protected	Board Members act in a quasi-judicial capacity and are immune	Yes, Board Members are absolutely immune for the summary suspension act.
Whether Younger abstention bars Buckwalter’s equitable claims	Equitable relief should not be barred while state proceedings continue	State proceedings implicate important interests and are ongoing	Yes, Younger abstention requires dismissal of Buckwalter’s equitable claims.

Buckley v. Fitzsimmons, 509 U.S. 259 (U.S. 1993) (absolute-immunity framework for executive officials)
Mishler v. Clift, 191 F.3d 998 (9th Cir. 1999) (board members as quasi-judicial; absolute immunity for disciplinary acts)
Butz v. Economou, 438 U.S. 478 (U.S. 1978) (factors for functional comparability to judicial acts (Butz factors))
Cleavinger v. Saxner, 474 U.S. 193 (U.S. 1985) (nonexclusive Butz factors for judicial function analysis)
Watts v. Burkhart, 978 F.2d 269 (6th Cir. 1992 (en banc)) (summary suspension analogous to judicial act; absolute immunity)
Wang v. N.H. Bd. of Registration in Med., 55 F.3d 698 (1st Cir. 1995) (absolute immunity for board members on summary suspension)
Horwitz v. State Bd. of Med. Exam'rs, 822 F.2d 1508 (10th Cir. 1987) (absolute immunity for medical board members)
DiBlasio v. Novello, 344 F.3d 292 (2d Cir. 2003) (DiBlasio distinguished; Nevada scheme differs from New York’s)
Middlesex Cnty. Ethics Comm. v. Garden State Bar Ass'n, 457 U.S. 423 (U.S. 1982) (Younger abstention framework; essential factors)
Potrero Hills Landfill, Inc. v. Cnty. of Solano, 657 F.3d 876 (9th Cir. 2011) ( Younger abstention applicability to ongoing state proceedings)
Minton v. Bd. of Med. Exam'rs, 110 Nev. 1060, 881 P.2d 1339 (Nev. 1994) (Nevada reviewability of federal claims in state proceedings)