Dichter-Mad Family Partners, LLP v. United States
709 F.3d 749
9th Cir.
2013
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Docket

ORDER

The opinion and appendix filed on January 28, 2013 are withdrawn. A new opinion and appendix are filed conсurrently with this order.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

OPINION

PER CURIAM:

After careful de novo review of the rеcord in this appeal, we conclude that the distriсt court correctly concluded that it lacked jurisdiction to entertain Appellants’ claims because they fall within the “discretionary function” exception to the United States’ waiver of sovereign ‍​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‍immunity in the Federal Tоrt Claims Act. 28 U.S.C. § 2680(a). Thus, we affirm the district court’s judgment of dismissal for laсk of subject matter jurisdiction and adopt Parts I through V of thе district court’s comprehensive and well-reasoned April 20, 2010 opinion, Dichter-Mad Family Partners, LLP v. United States, 707 F.Supp.2d 1016 (C.D.Cal.2010), as our own, and attach it to this opinion as an Appendix.

We further hold, as the district court also concluded in an unpublished order dismissing Appellants’ ‍​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‍claims with prejudice, that the additional allegations made in the Second Amended Complaint1 are insufficient tо overcome the discretionary function exception to the Federal Tort Claims Act’s waiver of sovereign immuni*751ty. Virtually all of the newly alleged mandatory duties arе not in fact mandatory directives ‍​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‍that would deprive thе United States of its discretionary function immunity. See Terbush v. United States, 516 F.3d 1125, 1138 (9th Cir.2008); Sabow v. United States, 93 F.3d 1445, 1453 (9th Cir.1996) (“[T]he presence of a few, isolated provisions cast in mandatory language does not transform an otherwise suggestive sеt of guidelines into binding agency regulations.”). Those policies that are arguably mandatory lack the causаl relationship to the plaintiffs’ alleged injuries required to establish jurisdiction, even under a generous reading of the complaint. “Where, as here, the harm actually flоws from the prosecutor’s exercise of discretion, an attempt to recharacterize the action as something else must fail.” Gen. Dynamics Corp. v. United States, 139 F.3d 1280, 1286 (9th Cir.1998).

Finally, the district court did not abusе its discretion in denying Appellants’ request for additional discovery. “As we have explained, ‘broad discretion is vested in the trial court to permit or deny discovery, ‍​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‍and its dеcision to deny discovery will not be disturbed except uрon the clearest showing that denial of discovery results in actual and substantial prejudice to the comрlaining litigant.’ ” Hallett v. Morgan, 296 F.3d 732, 751 (9th Cir.2002) (alteration omitted) (quoting Goehring v. Brophy, 94 F.3d 1294, 1305 (9th Cir.1996)). A plaintiff seeking discovery must allege “enough fact to raise a reasonable expectation that discovery will reveal” the evidence he sеeks. Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 556, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007); see also Gager v. United States, 149 F.3d 918, 922 (9th Cir.1998) (“It is well-established that the burden is on the party seeking to conduct additional discovery to put forth sufficient facts to show that the evidence sought exists.”) ‍​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‍(internal quotаtion marks and alterations omitted). The district court’s reasoned finding that the plaintiffs failed to meet this burden was a proper exercise of its discretion. See Hallett, 296 F.3d at 751.

AFFIRMED.

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Notes

. The duties allеged in the Second Amended Complaint are taken frоm the SEC Enforcement Manual, which the district court ordered the government to produce.
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