Hollman

MEMORANDUM **

Plaintiff-Appellee James Hollman filed an action for declaratory judgment challenging the constitutionality of Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (“CNMI”) Public Law No. 11-105, which permitted the CNMI Superior Court to appropriate and expend interest accruing from trust accounts administered by that court. At the time, Hollman was acting as guardian ad litem of a minor claimant in a pending CNMI probate proceeding, whose interests in the probate property would have been affected by the law’s implementation. The district court granted Hollman’s motion for summary judgment, striking down the law on constitutional grounds. The district court also awarded Hollman attorney’s fees under 42 U.S.C. § 1988 . The CNMI appeals only from the fee award and not from the underlying judgment. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 , and we reverse.

CNMI’s contends that the district court erred in awarding attorney’s fees under § 1988 because Hollman never stated a viable claim under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 . 1 Under § 1988, the court may award attorney’s fees to a “prevailing party” in a § 1983 action. Section 1983, in turn, creates liability for “persons” who,…