Filed: Oct. 27, 2006
Latest Update: Feb. 21, 2020
Summary: United States Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit F I L E D IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS October 27, 2006 FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT _ Charles R. Fulbruge III Clerk No. 06-30182 Summary Calendar _ NICOLAS ESTIVERNE, Plaintiff - Appellant, versus TIMES-PICAYUNE LLC; KEITH O'BRIEN; SUSAN FINCH; UNIDENTIFIED PARTIES; CHARLES PLATTSMIER, In His Individual Capacity and as Chief Disciplinary Counsel for the Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board and His Insurer (unknown), Defendants - Appellees. _ Appea
Summary: United States Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit F I L E D IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS October 27, 2006 FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT _ Charles R. Fulbruge III Clerk No. 06-30182 Summary Calendar _ NICOLAS ESTIVERNE, Plaintiff - Appellant, versus TIMES-PICAYUNE LLC; KEITH O'BRIEN; SUSAN FINCH; UNIDENTIFIED PARTIES; CHARLES PLATTSMIER, In His Individual Capacity and as Chief Disciplinary Counsel for the Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board and His Insurer (unknown), Defendants - Appellees. _ Appeal..
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United States Court of Appeals
Fifth Circuit
F I L E D
IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
October 27, 2006
FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT
_____________________ Charles R. Fulbruge III
Clerk
No. 06-30182
Summary Calendar
_____________________
NICOLAS ESTIVERNE,
Plaintiff - Appellant,
versus
TIMES-PICAYUNE LLC; KEITH O'BRIEN; SUSAN FINCH;
UNIDENTIFIED PARTIES; CHARLES PLATTSMIER, In
His Individual Capacity and as Chief Disciplinary
Counsel for the Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary
Board and His Insurer (unknown),
Defendants - Appellees.
_________________________________________________________________
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Eastern District of Louisiana
USDC No. 2:05-CV-2227
_________________________________________________________________
Before JOLLY, DENNIS, and CLEMENT, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:*
Nicolas Estiverne appeals the district court’s dismissal of
his suit for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction. This case arose
after The Times-Picayune published a front-page story on May 31,
2005, headlined “Ex-lawyer accused of bilking ill senior citizen,”
that described criminal allegations against Estiverne. Estiverne
avers that he was told by the newspaper’s reporters that Charles
Plattsmier, the Chief Disciplinary Counsel for the Louisiana
*
Pursuant to 5TH CIR. R. 47.5, the Court has determined that
this opinion should not be published and is not precedent except
under the limited circumstances set forth in 5TH CIR. R. 47.5.4.
Attorney Discipline Board, gave them sealed files concerning
Estiverne’s 2000 resignation from the Louisiana state bar.
Estiverne claimed that the resulting article defamed him and
violated his right to privacy, and that the defendants conspired to
violate his Fourteenth Amendment rights. The only argument
Estiverne appears to offer on appeal, however, is that the district
court erred in failing to address alleged racial discrimination by
Plattsmier. Estiverne contends that Plattsmier’s racial prejudice
was the underlying motive for the defamation and invasion of
privacy he is alleged to have suffered. As is made clear in the
opinion of the district court, however, Estiverne’s claim under 42
U.S.C. § 1983 must allege both the deprivation of “a right or
interest secured by the Constitution and laws of the United States
... [and] that the deprivation occurred under color of state law.”
Doe v. Rains County Indep. School Dist.,
66 F.3d 1402, 1406 (5th
Cir. 1995) (citations omitted). Reputational injury “is neither
‘liberty’ nor ‘property’ guaranteed against state deprivation
without due process of law,” Paul v. Davis,
424 U.S. 693, 712
(1976), unless “the injury is combined with the impairment of some
more tangible government benefit.” Siegert v. Gilley,
500 U.S.
226, 240 (1991). Estiverne has not alleged a violation of any
right guaranteed by federal law because damage to his reputation is
the only injury Estiverne alleges in his complaint. It is of no
moment to this analysis that Estiverne believes that racial animus
motivated Plattsmier’s actions. Due to the lack of diverse
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parties, Estiverne’s defamation and invasion of privacy claims are
only actionable under state law. Estiverne has not previously
asserted an equal protection claim and may not do so for the first
time on appeal. See Charter School of Pine Grove, Inc. v. St.
Helena Parish Sch. Bd.,
417 F.3d 444, 447 (5th Cir. 2005).
After careful review of the record and briefs, the thorough
and well-reasoned judgment of the district court is
AFFIRMED.
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