Vassilev

This case presents the question whether, under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA), a plaintiffs initial failure to exhaust his administrative remedies as to a defendant whom the plaintiff reasonably did not know was covered by the FTCA deprives the federal courts of subject-matter jurisdiction over that plaintiffs FTCA claim even after the plaintiff dismisses his initial suit against that defendant, and then exhausts his administrative remedies before amending his complaint in state court to add the defendant again. On appeal, Plaintiff-Appellant D.L. argues that the district court erred in dismissing his FTCA claim on exhaustion grounds. We agree.

BACKGROUND

A. Statutory Background

The FTCA, 28 U.S.C. §§ 1846 , 2671-80, waives the United States’ sovereign immunity for tort actions and vests the federal district courts with exclusive jurisdiction over suits arising from the negligence of government employees. Jerves v. United States, 966 F.2d 517, 518 (9th Cir. 1992). Before a plaintiff can file an FTCA action in federal court, however, he must exhaust the administrative remedies for his claim. 28 U.S.C. § 2675 (a). An administrative claim is deemed exhausted once the…