Meachum v. State Farm Fire & Casualty Company

Filing 8

ORDER granting 6 Motion to Remand; denying the motion for abstention; REMANDING this lawsuit to the Circuit Court of Geneva County, AL; directing the Clerk to take the necessary steps to effectuate the remand of this case to the Circuit Court. Signed by Judge Mark E. Fuller on 4/26/05. (Attachments: # 1 civil appeals checklist). Certified copy mailed to Clerk, Circuit Court.(djy, )

Meachum v. State Farm Fire & Casualty Company

Doc. 8

Case 1:05-cv-00319-MEF-DRB

Document 8

Filed 04/26/2005

Page 1 of 2

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR T H E MIDDLE DISTRICT OF ALABAMA S O U T H ER N DIVISION P AM E LA MEACHUM, P l a i n ti f f , v. S T A T E FARM FIRE & CASUALTY COMPANY, De fend ant. ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) )

CA SE NO. 1:05-cv-319-F WO

ORDER
U p o n consideration of the plaintiff's Motion for Abstention and Motion to Remand f i l ed on April 19, 2005 which was accompanied by the affidavit of Pamela Meachum 1 (Doc. # 6), and the Consent to Remand filed by the defendant (Doc. # 7), it is hereby

It is clearly established in this circuit that the district court may "consider post-removal evidence" in determining the propriety of removal. Sierminski v. Transouth Fin. Corp., 216 F.3d 945, 949 (11th Cir. 2000). However, "`the jurisdictional facts that support removal must be judged at the time of the removal, and any post petition affidavits are allowable only if relevant to that period of time.'" Id. (quoting Allen v R&H Oil Co., 63 F.3d 1326, 1335 (5th Cir. 1995) (emphasis added)). Under Sierminski, affidavits filed by plaintiffs in cases may be considered in determining jurisdiction to the extent that they clarify the Complaint by identifying that the amount in controversy was not in excess of $75,000 at the time the case was removed and will not be in excess of $75,000 in the future. See Moss v. Voyager Ins. Cos., 43 F. Supp. 2d 1298, 1303-1304 (M.D. Ala. 1999) (because plaintiff had "submitted a binding Stipulation in which she promised to neither seek nor accept damages in excess of $75,000," the defendants failed to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that damages would exceed $75,000.). Such affidavits should establish that, at the time the complaint was filed, plaintiffs did not seek more than the jurisdictional amount and that plaintiffs will not accept a jury award for more than the jurisdictional amount. The court notes that, although not required, some plaintiffs even agree in their affidavits to an irrevocable cap on damages of $74,999, exclusive of interest and costs. In the case subjudice, the affidavit submitted by plaintiff Pamela Meachum satisfies these requirements. (See Doc. # 6).

1

Dockets.Justia.com

Case 1:05-cv-00319-MEF-DRB

Document 8

Filed 04/26/2005

Page 2 of 2

ORDERED that the motion to remand (Doc. # 6) is GRANTED and the motion for a b s t e n ti o n is DENIED. Accordingly, the above-styled lawsuit is hereby REMANDED to t h e Circuit Court of Geneva County, Alabama. T h e Clerk of the Court is DIRECTED to take the necessary steps to effectuate the r e m a n d of this case to the Circuit Court of Geneva County, Alabama. D O N E this 26th day of April, 2005.

/s/ Mark E. Fuller CHIEF UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE