Colin Dyack v. Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Joseph K.P. Villagomez

Appellant Colin Dyack (“Dyack”) filed this action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (“CNMI”) and its Secretary of Public Health, alleging that the defendants violated his due process rights when they fired him from his position as a physician with the Department of Public Health without notice or an opportunity to be heard. The District Court granted summary judgment to the defendants, finding as a matter of law that Dyack was not a member of the CNMI civil service and therefore not entitled to notice of termination or an opportunity to respond. We agree and affirm the judgment of the district court.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

Dyack is a physician and a citizen of Canada. In October 1999, he entered into a two-year employment contract with the CNMI to work for the Department of Public Health at the Commonwealth Health Center (“CHC”) as an obstetrician/ gynecologist, for an annual salary of $101,500. The contract was entitled an “Excepted Service Employment Contract,” indicating that Dyack was considered to be excepted from the CNMI’s civil service system. The contract included a certification from the Director of Personnel for…