Colonial Life & Accident Insurance v. Medley

TASHIMA, Senior Circuit Judge.

We must decide whether the district court erred in issuing a preliminary injunction against proceedings pending before the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (“MCAD”) on the ground that federal law preempted state law claims because the district court was required to abstain from deciding the preemption issue under the doctrine of Younger v. Harris, 401 U.S. 37, 45-47, 91 S.Ct. 746, 27 L.Ed.2d 669 (1971). We conclude that where, as here, the preemption determination would require the district court to resolve a novel question of law, preemption is…