Case 1:08-cv-01572-PLF Document 19 Filed 12/15/2008 Page 1 of 4

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
____________________________________
)
COMMONWEALTH OF THE )
NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS, )
)
Plaintiff, )
)
v. ) 08-CV-01572 (PLF)
)
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, et al. )
)
Defendants. )
____________________________________)

DEFENDANTS’ MOTION TO DISMISS

Defendants, the United States of America; Michael Chertoff, Secretary of the Department

of Homeland Security (“DHS”); DHS; Elaine Chao, Secretary of the Department of Labor

(“DOL”); and DOL (collectively “United States”), submit the following memorandum in support

of their motion, pursuant to Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 12(b)(1) and 12(b)(6), to dismiss the

Complaint filed by the Plaintiff, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (“CNMI” or

“the Commonwealth”).

The CNMI, an unincorporated territory of the United States, requests that this Court

declare that Title VII of the Consolidated Natural Resources Act, Pub. L. No. 110-229, Title VII,

Subtitle A, 122 Stat. 754, 853 (2008) (“CNRA”), violates the terms of the relationship agreement

between the parties, entitled Covenant to Establish a Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana

Islands in Political Union with the United States of America, Pub. L. No. 94-241, 90 Stat. 263

(1976), as amended (“Covenant”). The CNRA applies the Immigration and Nationality Act and

other U.S. immigration laws to the CNMI beginning, at the earliest, in June 2009.
 Case 1:08-cv-01572-PLF Document 19 Filed 12/15/2008 Page 2 of 4

The action should be dismissed for four reasons: (1) the CNMI lacks standing to bring this

action because the injuries alleged by the CNMI are not “concrete and particularized” but are

instead speculative and hypothetical; (2) even if the alleged harms are not speculative, the injuries

alleged are too remote for the Court to adequately address them at this time, and thus the action is

not ripe; (3) the Governor of the CNMI lacks standing to bring this action on behalf of the CNMI

because he cannot show that he has a protected “procedural interest” that confers standing on him

to bring this action; and (4) even if the CNMI has met its minimum constitutional standing

requirements, the action should be dismissed because the Covenant, generally permits Congress

to apply federal law to the CNMI (Covenant § 105), and expressly and unambiguously permits

Congress to apply the immigration and naturalization laws of the United States to the CNMI

(Covenant § 503).

A memorandum of points and authorities accompanies this motion. The memorandum

attaches Exhibits A - D. The United States notes that Exhibit B is a partial document, consisting

of 65 pages. The original document is more than 100 pages, most of which are not relevant to

this action. However, upon request, the United States will provide paper copies of it or any other

Exhibit upon request.

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 Case 1:08-cv-01572-PLF Document 19 Filed 12/15/2008 Page 3 of 4

Dated: December 15, 2008 Respectfully submitted,

GREGORY G. KATSAS
Assistant Attorney General

DAVID J. KLINE
Director, District Court Section
Office of Immigration Litigation

VICTOR M. LAWRENCE
Principal Assistant Director

By: /s/ Theodore W. Atkinson

THEODORE W. ATKINSON
SAMUEL P. GO
DEREK C. JULIUS
United States Department of Justice
Civil Division, Office of Immigration Litigation
District Court Section
P. O. Box 868 Ben Franklin Station
Washington, DC 20044
Tel: (202) 532-4135
Fax: (202) 305-7000
E-mail: Theodore.Atkinson@usdoj.gov

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 Case 1:08-cv-01572-PLF Document 19 Filed 12/15/2008 Page 4 of 4

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

The undersigned hereby certifies that on December 15, 2008, he served a copy of the
attached Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss, along with the accompanying Memorandum in Support
and Exhibits A - D, by e-mail and through the CM/ECF system, which caused the following to be
served by electronic means on the following:

David W. DeBruin
JENNER & BLOCK LLP
1099 New York Avenue, NW
Suite 900
Washington , DC 20001
Email: ddebruin@jenner.com

Sharmila Sohoni
JENNER & BLOCK LLP
1099 New York Avenue, NW
Suite 900
Washington , DC 20001-4412
Email: ssohoni@jenner.com

William M. Hohengarten
JENNER & BLOCK LLP
1099 New York Avenue, NW
Suite 900
Washington , DC 20001
Email: whohengarten@jenner.com

Dated: December 15, 2008 /s/ Theodore W. Atkinson

THEODORE W. ATKINSON
United States Department of Justice