United States v. Pickard, 676 F.3d 1214

Pickard and Apperson were convicted of conspiracy to manufacture LSD and possession with intent to distribute LSD in the District of Kansas.
Their direct appeals were upheld; § 2255 relief was denied by the district court, and certificates of appealability were denied by this court in 2010.
They filed two Rule 60(b) motions in district court challenging the § 2255 proceedings and alleging newly discovered evidence and fraud.
On January 24, 2011, the district court denied some Rule 60(b) claims and transferred the rest to this court as second-or-successive § 2255 motions.
On March 24, 2011, they moved to unseal several government-witness files; the following day they appealed the district court’s denial of the Rule 60(b) claims.
The district court later declined to rule on the unsealing motion, citing lack of jurisdiction due to pending appeals; the court issued no ruling on the unseal motion before this appeal.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the appeal is jurisdictionally proper	Appellants contend district court erred by delaying ruling on unseal motion, affecting ongoing 2255 proceedings.	Government argues the district court’s order is not a final decision and collateral-order review is unavailable here.	No appellate jurisdiction; the order is not final and collateral-order review does not apply.
Whether mandamus relief is available	Appellants request mandamus to compel ruling on unseal motion.	Government argues mandamus relief is inappropriate absent clear jurisdictional error or abuse.	Mandamus relief denied; district court did not clearly lack jurisdiction or abuse its discretion.

Coopers & Lybrand v. Livesay, 437 U.S. 463 (1978) (collateral-order doctrine elements)
Mesa Oil, Inc. v. United States, 467 F.3d 1252 (10th Cir.2006) (collateral-order applicability in the Tenth Circuit)
Crystal Clear Commc'ns, Inc. v. Sw. Bell Tel. Co., 415 F.3d 1171 (10th Cir.2005) (collateral-order test prerequisites)
Boughton v. Cotter Corp., 10 F.3d 746 (10th Cir.1993) (interlocutory appeals burdens)
Reise v. Bd. of Regents of Univ. of Wis. Sys., 957 F.2d 293 (7th Cir.1992) (interlocutory appeals and discovery burdens)
Mohawk Indus., Inc. v. Carpenter, 130 S. Ct. 599 (2009) (limits of collateral-order doctrine)
United States v. Madrid, 633 F.3d 1222 (10th Cir.2011) (notice of appeal divests district court of jurisdiction)
United States v. McVeigh, 119 F.3d 806 (10th Cir.1997) (treatment of notices of appeal as mandamus petitions)
Cohen v. Beneficial Indus. Loan Corp., 337 U.S. 541 (1949) (finality and rights in delay rulings)
Steel Co. v. Citizens for a Better Env't, 523 U.S. 83 (1998) (standing and jurisdictional considerations)