Brownback v. King

Summary

The Supreme Court, in a unanimous opinion by Justice Thomas, held that the District Court's dismissal of King's Federal Tort Claims Act claims — by summary judgment and in the alternative under Rule 12(b)(6) — was a judgment on the merits that can trigger the FTCA's judgment bar, even though the dismissal also deprived the court of subject-matter jurisdiction. Because the FTCA's merits elements and jurisdictional elements entirely overlap, a plaintiff must plausibly allege all six §1346(b)(1) elements both to state a claim and to establish jurisdiction, so a ruling that the court lacks subject-matter jurisdiction may simultaneously pass on the substance of the claim. The Court reversed the Sixth Circuit, which had held the dismissal did not trigger the bar, and left for that court on remand King's alternative arguments that the judgment bar does not reach claims brought in the same suit. Justice Sotomayor concurred, emphasizing that the Court did not decide the same-suit preclusion question and arguing that it merits closer analysis and, where appropriate, reconsideration.