Carepartners LLC v. Pat Lashway

MEMORANDUM

The underlying facts are known to the parties and were addressed in CarePartners, LLC v. Lashway, 545 F.3d 867, 872-74 (9th Cir.2008). CarePartners Management LLC (CarePartners) and the other plaintiffs appeal the district court’s grant of summary judgment for the defendants, all of whom are state employees being sued in their personal capacities for constitutional torts under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and for a state law claim factually dependent on their First Amendment claim. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 and affirm the district court.

CarePartners operates boarding homes in Washington subject to state regulations. Prompted by state regulators wanting them to install fire sprinklers, CarePartners’s owner, Joseph Kilkelly, began lobbying to obtain exemptions. These efforts failed, and CarePartners had to shut down a facility until it complied. CarePartners filed suit, arguing that state regulators retaliated against CarePartners in violation of the First Amendment. The district court found that Kilkelly’s protected speech was not a substantial or motivating factor behind the regulatory enforcement, and granted summary judgment for the…