Najbar v. United States, 649 F.3d 868

Najbar filed an FTCA suit against the United States for four state-law torts after a USPS letter to her son in Iraq was stamped DECEASED and returned two weeks later.
The returned envelope prompted Najbar to seek information; Red Cross later verified her son was alive.
Najbar alleged the distress caused by the misrepresented death status and sought damages for emotional distress and related harms.
She exhausted administrative remedies with the Postal Service after a denial and reconsideration of her claim.
The district court dismissed for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction, ruling the claims fell within the misrepresentation exception but not the postal-matter exception; Najbar appeals.
The panel affirms the dismissal on a different basis: the postal-matter exception bars the suit.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the postal-matter exception bars the FTCA claim.	Najbar argues the injury arose from emotional distress due to misdelivery of information.	The government contends the claim falls within the postal-matter exception because it concerns misdelivery/miscarriage of mail.	Yes; the postal-matter exception bars the suit.
Whether the misrepresentation exception applies if the postal-matter exception does not.	Najbar would rely on misrepresentation if postal-matter did not apply.	If postal-matter applies, misrepresentation is unnecessary to dispose of the case.	Not reached/necessary because postal-matter applies.

United States v. Sherwood, 312 U.S. 584 (1941) (sovereign immunity is subject to the government's consent to suit)
Dolan v. U.S. Postal Serv., 546 U.S. 481 (2006) (postal-matter exception focuses on the consequences of mail failure; immunity preserved for certain harms)
Osborn v. United States, 918 F.2d 724 (8th Cir.1990) (treat complaints as true for jurisdictional challenges under FTCA)
Hart v. United States, 630 F.3d 1085 (8th Cir.2011) (de novo review of FTCA exceptions; severest constraints on interpreting exemptions)