TINA ZAI, individually and as a Trustee of her Children’s Trusts; Stretford, Ltd. v. NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION BOARD, acting in its capacity as Liquidating Agent for the St. Paul Croatian Federal Credit Union - Articles

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TINA ZAI, individually and as a Trustee of her Children’s Trusts; Stretford, Ltd. v. NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION BOARD, acting in its capacity as Liquidating Agent for the St. Paul Croatian Federal Credit Union

Posted by: Azya Thornton on Aug 11, 2025

Court: 6th Circuit Court (Published Opinions)

Attorneys 1: ARGUED: Lawrence R. Acton, MCCARTHY, LEBIT, CRYSTAL & LIFFMAN CO., LPA, Cleveland, Ohio, for Appellants.

Attorneys 2: ARGUED: Samuel J. Lauricia III, WESTON HURD, Cleveland, Ohio, for Appellees.

Attorneys 3: ON BRIEF: Lawrence R. Acton, MCCARTHY, LEBIT, CRYSTAL & LIFFMAN CO., LPA, Cleveland, Ohio, for Appellants.

Attorneys 4: ON BRIEF: Samuel J. Lauricia III, Walter A. Lucas, Matthew C. Miller, WESTON HURD, Cleveland, Ohio, for Appellees.

Judge(s): THAPAR, NALBANDIAN, and READLER, Circuit Judges

Court Appealed: United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio at Cleveland.

THAPAR, Circuit Judge. St. Paul Croatian Federal Credit Union collapsed in 2010. After taking control of the failed credit union, the National Credit Union Administration Board sued Tina Zai and her husband, seeking to recover tens of millions of dollars they owed to St. Paul. Zai ultimately settled that lawsuit. Now, over a decade later, Zai has filed a new case against the Board. She alleges that the Board breached the settlement agreement that resolved the first lawsuit. But the merits of her case aren’t before us. Instead, this case turns on a jurisdictional question: does Zai’s lawsuit belong in federal court? Because it does, we vacate the district court’s judgment dismissing the case.

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