Cite as: 515 U. S. 417 (1995)
Opinion of the Court
tioners' suit. App. 7-9. In an unadorned order, the Fourth Circuit affirmed. 23 F. 3d 402 (1994).
The Circuits divide sharply on this issue. Parting from the Fourth Circuit, most of the Courts of Appeals have held certification by the Attorney General or her delegate amenable to court review.3 We granted certiorari to resolve the conflict, 513 U. S. 998 (1994),4 and we now reverse the Fourth Circuit's judgment.
II
A
We encounter in this case the familiar questions: where is the line to be drawn; and who decides. Congress has firmly answered the first question. "Scope of employment" sets the line. See § 2679(b)(1); United States v. Smith, 499 U. S. 160 (1991). If Lamagno is inside that line, he is not subject to petitioners' suit; if he is outside the line, he is personally answerable. The sole question, then, is who decides on which side of the line the case falls: the local United
3 Compare Johnson v. Carter, 983 F. 2d 1316 (CA4) (en banc), cert. denied, 510 U. S. 812 (1993); Garcia v. United States, 22 F. 3d 609, suggestion for rehearing en banc granted, 22 F. 3d 612 (CA5 1994); Aviles v. Lutz, 887 F. 2d 1046, 1048-1049 (CA10 1989) (certification not reviewable), with Nasuti v. Scannell, 906 F. 2d 802, 812-814 (CA1 1990); McHugh v. University of Vermont, 966 F. 2d 67, 71-75 (CA2 1992); Melo v. Hafer, 912 F. 2d 628, 639-642 (CA3 1990), aff'd on other grounds, 502 U. S. 21 (1991); Arbour v. Jenkins, 903 F. 2d 416, 421 (CA6 1990); Hamrick v. Franklin, 931 F. 2d 1209 (CA7), cert. denied, 502 U. S. 869 (1991); Brown v. Armstrong, 949 F. 2d 1007, 1010-1011 (CA8 1991); Meridian Int'l Logistics, Inc. v. United States, 939 F. 2d 740, 744-745 (CA9 1991); S. J. & W. Ranch, Inc. v. Lehtinen, 913 F. 2d 1538, 1543 (1990), modified, 924 F. 2d 1555 (CA11), cert. denied, 502 U. S. 813 (1991); Kimbro v. Velten, 30 F. 3d 1501 (CADC 1994), cert. pending, No. 94-6703 (certification reviewable).
4 The United States, in accord with petitioners, reads the Westfall Act to allow a plaintiff to challenge the Attorney General's scope-of-employment certification. We therefore invited Michael K. Kellogg to brief and argue this case, as amicus curiae, in support of the judgment below. 513 U. S. 1010 (1994). Mr. Kellogg accepted the appointment and has well fulfilled his assigned responsibility.
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