CitiMortgage Incorporated v. Dulaney et al
Filing
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ORDER that the Clerk of the Court REMAND this action back to Maricopa County Superior Court. Signed by Judge G Murray Snow on 1/14/2013. (LFIG)
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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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FOR THE DISTRICT OF ARIZONA
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CitiMortgage, Incorporated, its assignees
and/or successors,
No. CV-12-02737-PHX-GMS
ORDER
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Plaintiff,
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v.
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Charles Dulaney; et al.,
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Defendants.
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The present action was improperly removed and the Court lacks subject-matter
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jurisdiction over it; accordingly, the Court remands this case to Maricopa County
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Superior Court.
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Federal courts are courts of limited jurisdiction, having subject-matter jurisdiction
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only over those matters specifically authorized by Congress or the Constitution.
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Kokkonen v. Guardian Life Ins. Co., 511 U.S. 375, 377 (1994). As the proponent of the
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Court's jurisdiction, the removing defendant bears the burden of establishing it. Abrego
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Abrego v. The Dow Chemical Co., 443 F.3d 676, 685 (9th Cir. 2006).
Although the Notice of Removal states that a claim in the present action arises
under federal law, a review of the complaint reveals that it is a straightforward forcible
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detainer, otherwise known as an eviction action. And while it appears that Defendant
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Steven Hardman (“Defendant”) may assert a federal defense based on due process, the
assertion of a federal
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defense to a state-law claim does not convert the state-law claim into one “arising under”
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federal law for purposes of federal question jurisdiction. See Moore-Thomas v. Alaska
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Airlines, Inc., 553 F.3d 1241, 1244 (9th Cir. 2009) (discussing the “well-pleaded
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complaint rule”). Therefore, the Court has no federal question jurisdiction. See 28 U.S.C.
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§ 1331 (conferring on federal courts subject-matter jurisdiction over cases arising under
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federal law).
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To the extent that the Notice of Removal purports to invoke the Court’s diversity
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jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1332, the requirements for diversity jurisdiction are also
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not satisfied. To invoke the Court’s diversity jurisdiction, a defendant must show both
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that he and plaintiff are not residents of the same state, and that the amount in
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controversy exceeds $75,000. See 28 U.S.C. § 1332 (setting forth requirements for
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diversity jurisdiction). In addition, even when there is diversity between the parties, a
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federal court may not exercise jurisdiction where the moving defendant is a resident of
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the forum state. 28 U.S.C. § 1441(b). Here, the Court need not decide whether there is
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diversity between the parties or whether the amount in controversy requirement is met as
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Defendant reports his address as the property at issue in this action (located in Queen
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Creek, Arizona); thus, he is clearly a forum defendant who may not remove a state-court
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action. See id.
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Further, to the extent that Defendant is attempting to appeal the state court’s final
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judgment in the forcible detainer action, jurisdiction would not be proper in this case
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because federal jurisdiction is barred under the Rooker-Feldman doctrine. See Albrecht v.
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Demuniz, 315 F. App’x 654, 2009 WL 2914215, at *1 (9th Cir. 2009) (affirming the
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district court’s sua sponte dismissal of a pro se defendant’s appeal of a state court
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judgment under the Rooker-Feldman doctrine).
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federal district courts from considering “cases brought by state-court losers complaining
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The Rooker-Feldman doctrine bars
of injuries caused by state-court judgments rendered before the district court proceedings
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commenced and inviting district court review and rejection of those judgments.” Exxon
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Mobil Corp. v. Saudi Basic Indus. Corp., 544 U.S. 280 (2005).
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In the absence of subject-matter jurisdiction, this Court is empowered to sua
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sponte order summary remand. See 28 U.S.C. § 1446(c)(4) (requiring district courts to
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examine notices of removal and their exhibits and authorizing summary remand in
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appropriate circumstances); 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c) (requiring district courts to remand cases
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if it appears, at any time before final judgment is entered, that the court lacks subjectmatter jurisdiction).
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IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that the Clerk of the Court REMAND this
action back to Maricopa County Superior Court.
Dated this 14th day of January, 2013.
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