‘College is entitled to initiate judicial review of CSC decision’

The CNMI Supreme Court has ruled that the Northern Marianas College was entitled to initiate a judicial review of the Civil Service Commission’s decision to retain terminated NMC employee Jack Angello.

In reversing the Superior Court’s order, the justices said the statute does not preclude NMC from seeking judicial review.

The justices said the statute’s language grants standing for an agency to seek judicial review when that agency is not within the administrative body that enjoyed the decision-making authority.

“It is our opinion that the Legislature recognized the problems which might arise if an agency representative could persuade the courts to entertain such intra-agency disputes,” said the High Court in the opinion entered by Chief Justice Miguel S. Demapan and Associate Justices Alexandro C. Castro and John A. Manglona.

The justices remanded the case to the Superior Court for further proceedings consistent with their opinion.

Superior Court Associate Judge Juan T. Lizama, in a summary judgment, determined that NMC is an agency within the Commonwealth government and therefore lacks standing to seek judicial review of an administrative decision.

Court records show that Angello was an NMC employee until Sept. 24, 2002, when he was notified of his immediate termination.

Angello appealed his termination to the NMC Employment Appeals Committee. The committee upheld NMC’s decision to fire Angello.

Angello then appealed the committee’s decision to the Civil Service Commission. Angello argued that NMC’s decision to fire him without cause violated the provisions of the Personnel Service System Rules and Regulations.

NMC responded by asking the CSC to dismiss Angello’s appeal because CSC has no jurisdiction over NMC’s employment decisions.

The CSC, however, denied NMC’s dismissal request, ruling that “there is no provision in the law which exempts the employees of the NMC from the civil service system.”

In 2003, NMC appealed the CSC’s decision before the Superior Court, questioning the agency’s jurisdiction on the matter. In response, CSC claimed that NMC lacked standing to appeal CSC’s decision, asking the court for judgment without proceeding to trial.

The court granted CSC’s request. NMC, through counsel Jesus C. Borja, appealed the decision before the High Court.

The issue presented before the high tribunal was whether, and under what circumstances, an agency has standing to seek judicial review of an administrative proceeding.

The justices said a judicial review, like all aspects of administrative procedure in the CNMI, is governed by the Commonwealth Administrative Procedure Act.

Thus, they pointed out, NMC could seek judicial review of the CSC’s administrative decision pursuant to the CAPA.

The justices explained that non-decision-making agencies that are party to the administrative action have standing to seek judicial review.