New Mexic ex rel. State Eng'r v. Carson

899 F.3d 1132

State of NEW MEXICO, EX REL. STATE ENGINEER, Plaintiff-Appellee,

and

United States of America; Pueblo de Nambe; Pueblo de Pojoaque; Pueblo de San Ildefonso ; Pueblo de Tesuque, Intervenors Plaintiffs-Appellees,

and

City of Santa Fe, Santa Fe County; Rio de Tesuque Association, Inc., Defendants-Appellees,

v.Nansy CARSON; Paul Dotson ; Helen Rinke; Annette Duran; Grace L. Gomez; Margo Gomez; Barbara Aamodt; Viola Gonzales; Paul Aamodt; Gilbert Gonzales; Pete Aragon; Lucille Gonzales; Margie Archibeque; Dalila Archuleta; Jose G. Gonzales; Mardy Gonzales;

Eduardo Archuleta; Larry Herrera ; Angie Archuleta; John Hogden; Isaac Archuleta; M. A. Lathrop; Joe Archuleta; Jane Lipman ; John P. Archuleta; Elvira Archuleta; Mathew Logghe; Jose P. Archuleta; Tammy Logghe; Jerry Lugo ; Lydia Archuleta;

Janet B. Arrowsmith; Stephanie Kelly Madrid; James R. Attlesey; Edna Maes; Kathleen S. Attlesey; Anne Martinez; Walter Martinez ; Baudilio G. Baca; Roberto F. Baca; Eugene Ortiz; John Ortiz; James P. Barber ; John Provost; Ray James Roybal; Mark Blea;

Stella Shelburn; April Blea; Tony Trujillo ; John Borrego ; Christi Offutt; Catherine Borrego; Juan Borrego; Joseph P. Valdez; Nathan L. Borrego; Dan Valencia; Warren Hall Young; M. J. Bustos; Lucy Yuan; Ignacio Carreno; Annabelle Carreno;

Steve Carson ; Tim Cash; Melvin Chaney; Elaine Chavez; Manuel Chavez; Felix Chavez; Lynne Comeau; Lucy M. Cornwell; Marcella Cur; Gerard Cur; Michael Demaria; Bruce Duran; Dave Duran ; Leroy Duran; Michelle Duran;

Priscilla Duran ; Robert L. Duran; Ronnie Duran; Steve Duran ; Beverly Duran-Cash; Tanya Edwards; Mathew Edwards; Virginia Espinosa; Andrea Fisher ; Linda Fluk; Arnold Gabaldon; David Gallegos ; Elaine Gallegos; Manny Gallegos ; Nick Gallegos ; Gloria J. Gallegos;

Phyllis Gallegos ; Lia Gallegos; Ramon Gallegos; Valdez Gallegos; Janito Gallegos; Anthony Garcia; Jerry L. Garcia; Joe Garcia; Amelia Garcia ; Kathleen Garcia; Leonardo Garcia ; Maria E. Garcia; Mariano Garcia;

Ramon Garcia; Ramona Garcia; Gilbert Garduno; Gilbert John Garduno; Katherine Garduno; JD Paul Garduno; Margaret Garduno; Fernando Garzon; Fernie M. Giron; George Gomez; John Gomez; Loyola Gomez; Ramona Gomez; Beth Gonzales; Debbie Gonzales;

Fermin Gonzales ; Juan Gonzales ; Marlene Gonzales; Robert Gonzales; Rodolfo Gonzales; Susan Gonzales; Jake Gonzales; Diana Gonzalez; Tony Gonzalez; Eileen M. Goodwin; Nancy Grabowski; John Gutting; Puanani G. Harvey; Ernestine Herrera; Martha Herrera; Kevin Herrera ; Nicole Voight; Thomas Hicks; Carol Hogsett; Victor Hogsett;

Dolores B. Jacobs; Benito Jacquez; Carla M. Jacquez; Edward Jacquez; Facundo Cundy Jimenez; Juan C. Jimenez ; Louise L. Jimenez; Sara Jimenez; Lorraine Jiminez; Frank R. Jiminez; James Jiron; Juan F. Jiron; Arabella A. Jiron; Lynn R. Kelly; Kim Helms; Patricia McMahon Kennedy; Richard L. Kreischer; Diane P. Kreischer; Aaron Law ; Rose Law; Karla Leyba;

Christina D. Lopez; Joseph C. Lopez; Sherry Lopez ; Manuel Lopez; Petronila M. Lopez; Margaret E. Lopez; Orlando L. Lopez; Edward Lucero, Jr.; Stephanie Lucero; Nancy F. Lujan, (Doherty); Amadeo R. Lujan; Pedro Lujan; Evelyn Lujan; Janet Herrera ; Tom Lynch; Larry Maassen; Marybeth Maassen; Romero Maes; Lucy Maes; Virginia Maes; Michael Margiotta;

Mary Ellen Marino ; Alex Martinez; Bernadette Martinez; Edward F. Martinez; Emilio Martinez; Gerard Martinez ; Susie Martinez; Jose AB Martinez; Manuel Martinez; Angie Martinez ; Paul Moore; Manuel Martinez; Faviola Martinez; Mary G. Martinez; Michael Martinez; Rodney David Martinez; Victor Martinez; Berlinda Martinez; Cindy Martinez; Mary Woodson, Woodson Family Trust; Marcella Mathieson; Peter Gomez; Raymond McAllister; Estate of Allen McNoun;

Mark McNoun; A. Greer McSpadden; Jacob Mendez; Jessica L. Mendez; Sandra Mendoza ; Brenda Molina; Eleazar Molina; Sylvia Molina ; Joseph Montes ; Anthony Montoya ; Vickie Montoya; Ben Montoya ; Carmen Montoya; David Montoya ; Cynthia Montoya; Henry Montoya; Virginia Montoya; Lee Naranjo; Dave Neal; Christella Neal; Keith J. Obermaier; Heather Nordquist; Terrence Nordquist, Mike O'Keefe;

Johanna W. Ogle; Jose F. Ortiz Trust; Bart Ortiz; Teri A. Ortiz; Margaret Ortiz; Eddie H. Ortiz; Jennie Ortiz; Rosa M. Ortiz; Stephanie Padilla; David Paul; C. Robert Quintana; Annette Perez ; Bersabella R. Perez; Kristoppher Peterson; Frances Quintana; Celestino Quintana; Andrew Rivera ; J. E. Roybal; Sylvia Quintana; Herman Trujillo; Kathy Romero;

Kathryn L. Romero; Frances Quintana; Fernando Quintana ; Arcy Rivera; John Valencia; Amelia Roybal; Juan F. Romero ; Gus Roybal; Mary Quintana; Lucy Rios ; Mary Richerson ; Robert Rios ; Amanda Rivas ; Thomas Rivas; Joseph J. Romero ; Carolyn Romero ; Danette Trujillo; Juan F. Romero ; Auginaldo Romero; John Romero; Lola Thompson; Reuben Roybal; Jose Alfredo Roybal; Joseph A. Valdez; Joann S. Romero; June Roybal;

Joe Romero ; Carolyn Hall Young; Olivia Romero; Margarita Trujillo; Monica Trujillo; Rubanna Rodriguez; Audrey Torres; Larry S. Roybal; Anna Belle Rivera; Oliver Rivera; Larry Rodriguez ; Steve Salazar ; Philbert Romero; Vincent Yuan ; Kathy Romero; Florencio Romero; Elizabeth Romero; Cleo B. Valdez; Atanacio Romero; Oralia M. Romero; Diane Trujillo; Patricia Roybal; Geraldine R. Towles; Annette Roybal; Bertha L. Romero;

Cipriano Romero; Henry Roybal; Lynne Velasco ; Diane Roybal; Ellen Trujillo; Mona Valencia; Patsy Sandoval; Freddy Roybal; Fabie Valdez; Seferino Valdez; Jeff Trujillo ; Jake Trujillo; John B. Trujillo; Patricia Gonzales-Urioste; the Estate of Pedro Roybal; Jennifer Duran Ulibarri; Steven Dunbar, Spin; Casa Las Barrancas Homeowners Association; Manuel F. Valdez; Levi Sandoval; Susan Wolff ; Jerry Wolff ; Flavio Valencia; Celia C. Ulibarri; Maureen Trujillo;

Barbara Wolf; A. E. Valdez; Pedro Romero; George Vigil; Joe Trujillo; Doris Roybal; David Wolf; Christella A. Salazar; Isador Valdez; Diana Trujillo; Monica Roybal; Delbert Roybal; Ricardo Romero ; Cordelia Roybal; Andy Welch; Cathy Salazar; Thomas A. Sisneros; Arthur & Laura Roybal Estate; Carmelito Sweeney; Jessica Trujillo; Pamela J. Trujillo, Eliza Valdez; Ester Vigil; Louise Vigil; Gary Sullivan; Cristina Salazar-Langley; Ernie Trujillo ;

Joann Serna; Edward Valdez; Patricia Trujillo; Stella Trujillo; Jose Trujillo ; Pita Valencia; Arnold Vigil; Vanessa Stein; Chris Valdez ; Roman Valdez; Carl Trujillo; Phillip Villareal; Loyola Trujillo; Alex Trujillo ; Phillip Roybal; Linda Salazar; Loretta Valerio; Victor Sandoval; John Sena; Anna V. Trujillo; Albert Staldelmaier; Vicent Roybal; Jake Scarborough; Dan Trujillo ;

Martha Trujillo; Larry Ulibarri; Teofilo Vigil; Prescilla Roybal; Jeoff Urioste; William Roybal; Frank Sena; Sharon Trujillo; Daniel J. Trujillo; Ronald Trujillo ; Erik Valdez; Roy Trujillo; Annie Vigil; Sylvia Trujillo; Phillip Ulibarri; Esquipula N. Valdez; Olivia Trujillo; Socorro Trujillo; Ernest Ulibarri, Jr.; John Valdez ; Ruby Valdez; Darlene Valdez; Gustavo Vigil; Matthew Wheeler; Sylvia Villareal; Paul White;

Richard Bernard; Jacqueline Cordova; Deborah Dant; Ashley Garcia ; Gabriel C. Herrera; Gabriel C. Herrera, Jr.; Glenda Irving; Lorraine Johnson; Blair Naylor; Roberto C. Ortiz; David M. Suszcynsky; Mark Wolff ; Woodson Family Trust, Defendants-appellants,

and

BG & Co, LLC; Marie Bernard; Clara Demaria; Christopher Garcia; Gabriel A. Herrera; Gary Johnson; Elizabelle Martinez; Lionel Naylor; Mary Ellen Ortiz; Deborah Pena; Frank Romero, Jr.; Bill Roybal; Danny Roybal; Joseph Larry Roybal; Elisabeth Sandoval, Appellants.

No. 17-2147

United States Court of Appeals, Tenth Circuit.

Filed August 15, 2018

Dori E. Richards (A. Blair Dunn, with her on the briefs), Western Agriculture, Resource and Business Advocates, LLP, Albuquerque, New Mexico, for Appellants.

John L. Smeltzer, Environment & Natural Resources Division, U.S. Department of Justice (Eric Grant, Andrew "Guss" Guarino, Mark R. Haag, Environment & Natural Resources Division, U.S. Department of Justice; Joshua Mann, U.S. Department of the Interior; with him on the briefs), Washington, D.C., for the United States of America.

Gregory C. Ridgley (Arianne Singer and Kelly Brooks Smith, with him on the briefs), Santa Fe, New Mexico, for the State of New Mexico.

John W. Utton, Utton & Kery, P.A., Santa Fe, New Mexico, filed an answer brief and a supplemental brief on behalf of Santa Fe County.

Marcos D. Martinez, Santa Fe, New Mexico, filed an answer brief and a supplemental brief on behalf of the City of Santa Fe.

Larry C. White, Santa Fe, New Mexico, filed a response brief and a supplemental brief on behalf of the Rio de Tesuque Association, Inc.

Scott B. McElroy and Alice E. Walker, McElroy, Meyer, Walker & Condon, P.C., Boulder, Colorado, filed an answer brief and a supplemental brief on behalf of the Pueblo of Nambé.

Maria O'Brien and Sarah M. Stevenson, Modrall Sperling, Albuquerque, New Mexico, filed an answer brief and a supplemental brief on behalf of the Pueblo of Pojoaque.

Peter C. Chestnut and Ann Berkley Rodgers, Chestnut Law Offices, P.A., Albuquerque, New Mexico, filed an answer brief and a supplemental brief on behalf of the Pueblo De San Ildefonso.

Majel M. Russel, Elk River Law Office, Billings, Montana, filed an answer brief and a supplemental brief on behalf of the Pueblo de Tesuque.

Before LUCERO, McKAY, and MORITZ, Circuit Judges.

LUCERO, Circuit Judge.

This appeal arises from a decades-long water rights adjudication in the Pojoaque Basin of New Mexico. After a settlement was reached among many of the parties involved, those who did not agree to the settlement objected. The district court overruled their objections, approved the settlement, and entered final judgment. The objecting parties now appeal. Exercising jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291, we reverse and remand the case for entry of an order vacating the district court's judgment and dismissing the objections for lack of subject matter jurisdiction.

I

The Pojoaque Basin (the "Basin") comprises a geographic area limited by a surface...