Fellowship of Christ Church v. Thorburn

Appellants challenge the district court’s holding that res judicata bars relitigation under § 1983 of their claim, which has been finally determined in state court. The appellants contend that res judicata does not bar their claim primarily because they never received an evidentiary hearing in state court, and secondarily because not all of the federal plaintiffs participated in and are bound by the state litigation. We find these contentions to be without merit, and affirm the district court.

This dispute first arose before Judge James S. Thorburn, a defendant in the present suit, in his…