Barfus v. City of Miami

CLARK, Circuit Judge This is an appeal by Miami firefighters (Barfus et al.) and a Miami police officer (Sullivan) from the district court's dismissal of their Title VII action for reverse discrimination as an impermissible collateral attack on a consent decree. The district court dismissed the complaints pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(1), reasoning that because the complaints constituted collateral attacks, the court lacked subject matter jurisdiction over appellants' claims.1 Because we hold that appellants' Title VII complaints do not constitute collateral attacks on the consent decree, and because appellants have standing to bring an independent Title VII suit, we reverse and remand to allow the district court to consider the merits of appellants' claims and to permit the City to file its answer and to present any defenses to appellants' charges of reverse discrimination. FACTS