Filed: Mar. 16, 2009
Latest Update: Feb. 12, 2020
Summary: UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 08-1579 XITENG LIU, Plaintiff - Appellant, v. UNITED STATES CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION SERVICES, Texas Service Center, Defendant - Appellee. Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina, at Columbia. Cameron McGowan Currie, District Judge. (3:06-cv-03255-CMC) Submitted: February 4, 2009 Decided: March 16, 2009 Before WILKINSON, MICHAEL, and SHEDD, Circuit Judges. Affirmed by unpublished per
Summary: UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 08-1579 XITENG LIU, Plaintiff - Appellant, v. UNITED STATES CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION SERVICES, Texas Service Center, Defendant - Appellee. Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina, at Columbia. Cameron McGowan Currie, District Judge. (3:06-cv-03255-CMC) Submitted: February 4, 2009 Decided: March 16, 2009 Before WILKINSON, MICHAEL, and SHEDD, Circuit Judges. Affirmed by unpublished per c..
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UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
No. 08-1579
XITENG LIU,
Plaintiff - Appellant,
v.
UNITED STATES CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION SERVICES, Texas
Service Center,
Defendant - Appellee.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of
South Carolina, at Columbia. Cameron McGowan Currie, District
Judge. (3:06-cv-03255-CMC)
Submitted: February 4, 2009 Decided: March 16, 2009
Before WILKINSON, MICHAEL, and SHEDD, Circuit Judges.
Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.
Robert L. Widener, MCNAIR LAW FIRM, P.A., Columbia, South
Carolina, for Appellant. W. Walter Wilkins, United States
Attorney, Marvin J. Caughman, Assistant United States Attorney,
Columbia, South Carolina, for Appellee.
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
PER CURIAM:
Xiteng Liu appeals a district court order adopting the
magistrate judge’s report and recommendation and granting the
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services’ (“USCIS”)
motion to dismiss his complaint seeking an order directing the
USCIS to grant him authorization for optional practical training
(“OPT”), see 8 C.F.R. § 214.2(f)(10)(ii) (2006), for a certain
period of time and to award him monetary damages for mental
relief, living expenses and medical expenses. The district
court adopted the magistrate judge’s report and recommendation
finding it did not have jurisdiction. Finding no reversible
error, we affirm.
This court reviews de novo the district court order
granting a motion to dismiss for failing to state a claim and
for lack of jurisdiction. Sucampo Pharms., Inc. v. Astellas
Pharma, Inc.,
471 F.3d 544, 550 (4th Cir. 2006). We find Liu
failed to state a claim insofar as he sought an order compelling
the USCIS to extend his OPT. The decision from which Liu
originally sought relief was essentially withdrawn by the USCIS
when it granted Liu OPT. Thus, his claim was moot. The
district court did not have the authority to compel the USCIS to
modify the decision to grant OPT beyond what was authorized by
regulation. See 5 U.S.C. § 706(1), (2) (2006).
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The district court correctly found it did not have
jurisdiction to consider Liu’s claim for monetary damages.
Under the Federal Tort Claims Act (“FTCA”), the United States
may be liable for tort claims in the same manner and to the same
extent as a private individual under the circumstances. See 28
U.S.C. § 2674 (2006). It is incumbent upon the claimant to
exhaust his claim with the agency prior to bringing a suit in
district court. 28 U.S.C. § 2675(a) (2006). Failure to exhaust
administrative remedies must result in dismissal of the lawsuit
for want of jurisdiction. Plyler v. United States,
900 F.2d 41,
42 (4th Cir. 1990). A court may “not read futility or other
exceptions into statutory exhaustion requirements where Congress
has provided otherwise.” Booth v. Churner,
532 U.S. 731, 741
n.6 (2001); see also Indus. Constructors Corp. v. U.S. Bureau of
Reclamation,
15 F.3d 963, 968 (10th Cir. 1994) (futility
argument rejected for FTCA claim).
Accordingly, we affirm the district court order. We
dispense with oral argument because the facts and legal
contentions are adequately presented in the materials before the
court and argument would not aid the decisional process.
AFFIRMED
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