Nationstar Mortgage LLC v. Carreras

Filing 5

ORDER and FINDINGS and RECOMMENDATIONS signed by Magistrate Judge Kendall J. Newman on 5/28/15 ORDERING that the 9/24/15 status conference before the undersigned be VACATED; and RECOMMENDING that the action be remanded to the Yuba County Superior Cou rt; that the Clerk of Court be directed to serve a certified copy of the order on the Clerk of the Yuba County Superior Court, and reference the state case number (15-0000094) in the proof of service; that the Clerk of Court be directed to vacate all dates and close this case. Referred to Judge John A. Mendez; Objections to F&R due within 14 days after being served with these findings and recommendations. (Meuleman, A)

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

9

FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

10
11

NATIONSTAR MORTGAGE LLC,

No. 2:15-cv-1137-JAM-KJN PS

12
Plaintiff,

13

ORDER AND
v.

14
15

FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
JOHN MANUEL CARRERAS,

16

Defendant.

17
This is an unlawful detainer action that was removed to this court by defendant John

18
19

Manuel Carreras, proceeding without counsel, from the Yuba County Superior Court on May 27,

20

2015. (ECF No. 1.)1 Defendant paid the filing fee.
A federal court has an independent duty to assess whether federal subject matter

21
22

jurisdiction exists, whether or not the parties raise the issue. See United Investors Life Ins. Co. v.

23

Waddell & Reed Inc., 360 F.3d 960, 967 (9th Cir. 2004) (stating that “the district court had a duty

24

to establish subject matter jurisdiction over the removed action sua sponte, whether the parties

25

raised the issue or not”); accord Rains v. Criterion Sys., Inc., 80 F.3d 339, 342 (9th Cir. 1996).

26

Because subject matter jurisdiction may not be waived by the parties, a district court must remand

27
28

1

This case proceeds before the undersigned pursuant to E.D. Cal. L.R. 302(c)(21) and 28 U.S.C.
§ 636(b)(1).
1

1

a case if it lacks jurisdiction over the matter. Kelton Arms Condominium Owners Ass’n, Inc. v.

2

Homestead Ins. Co., 346 F.3d 1190, 1192 (9th Cir. 2003) (citing Sparta Surgical Corp. v. Nat’l

3

Ass’n of Sec. Dealers, Inc., 159 F.3d 1209, 1211 (9th Cir. 1998)); see also 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c)

4

(“If at any time before final judgment it appears that the district court lacks subject matter

5

jurisdiction, the case shall be remanded”). For the reasons outlined below, the court finds that it

6

lacks federal subject matter jurisdiction over the action and recommends that the action be

7

remanded to state court.

8
9
10
11
12

In relevant part, the federal removal statute provides:
(a) Except as otherwise expressly provided by Act of Congress, any
civil action brought in a State court of which the district courts of
the United States have original jurisdiction, may be removed by the
defendant or the defendants, to the district court of the United
States for the district and division embracing the place where such
action is pending.

13

28 U.S.C. § 1441(a). “The defendant bears the burden of establishing that removal is proper.”

14

Provincial Gov’t of Marinduque v. Placer Dome, Inc., 582 F.3d 1083, 1087 (9th Cir. 2009). “The

15

removal statute is strictly construed against removal jurisdiction,” id., and removal jurisdiction

16

“must be rejected if there is any doubt as to the right of removal in the first instance,” Geographic

17

Expeditions, Inc. v. Estate of Lhotka, 599 F.3d 1102, 1107 (9th Cir. 2010) (citation and quotation

18

marks omitted).

19

A federal district court generally has original jurisdiction over a civil action when: (1) a

20

federal question is presented in an action “arising under the Constitution, laws, or treaties of the

21

United States” or (2) there is complete diversity of citizenship and the amount in controversy

22

exceeds $75,000. See 28 U.S.C. §§ 1331, 1332(a).

23

In regards to federal question jurisdiction, federal courts have “jurisdiction to hear,

24

originally or by removal from a state court, only those cases in which a well-pleaded complaint

25

establishes either that federal law creates the cause of action, or that the plaintiff’s right to relief

26

necessarily depends on resolution of a substantial question of federal law.” Franchise Tax Bd. v.

27

Constr. Laborers Vacation Trust, 463 U.S. 1, 27-28 (1983); see also Republican Party of Guam v.

28

Gutierrez, 277 F.3d 1086, 1088-89 (9th Cir. 2002). “[T]he presence or absence of federal2

1

question jurisdiction is governed by the ‘well-pleaded complaint rule,’ which provides that

2

federal jurisdiction exists only when a federal question is presented on the face of the plaintiff’s

3

properly pleaded complaint.” Placer Dome, Inc., 582 F.3d at 1091 (citation and quotation marks

4

omitted). “In determining the existence of removal jurisdiction, based upon a federal question,

5

the court must look to the complaint as of the time the removal petition was filed.” Abada v.

6

Charles Schwab & Co., 300 F.3d 1112, 1117 (9th Cir. 2002) (citation and quotation marks

7

omitted). Mere reference to federal law is insufficient to permit removal. See Smith v. Indus.

8

Valley Title Ins. Co., 957 F.2d 90, 93 (3d Cir. 1992) (“[T]he mere presence of a federal issue in a

9

state cause of action does not automatically confer federal question jurisdiction”). Also, defenses

10

and counterclaims cannot provide a sufficient basis to remove an action to federal court. See

11

Vaden v. Discover Bank, 556 U.S. 49, 60 (2009); Berg v. Leason, 32 F.3d 422, 426 (9th Cir.

12

1994); Takeda v. Northwestern Nat’l Life Ins. Co., 765 F.2d 815, 821-22 (9th Cir. 1985).

13

Here, removal cannot be based on federal question jurisdiction. The state court pleadings

14

and papers accompanying the removal notice establish that the state court action is nothing more

15

than a simple unlawful detainer action involving real property located in Plumas Lake, California.

16

This court has no jurisdiction over unlawful detainer actions, which are brought pursuant to state

17

law and fall strictly within the province of the state court.

18

Defendant contends that federal question jurisdiction exists here, because plaintiff

19

purportedly provided defendant with defective notice to vacate the property for purposes of a

20

federal law – the Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act (“PTFA”). See Pub. L. No. 111-22, §

21

702, 123 Stat. 1632 (2009). The PTFA “provides certain protections to tenants who reside in

22

properties subject to foreclosure,” including the requirement that a 90-day notice to vacate be

23

given to bona fide tenants. SD Coastline LP v. Buck, 2010 WL 4809661, at **1-2 (S.D. Cal.

24

Nov. 19, 2010) (unpublished). However, plaintiff’s complaint itself is strictly an action based on

25

the California unlawful detainer statutes, and defendant’s reference to the PTFA is best

26

characterized as a potential defense or counterclaim, neither of which is considered in evaluating

27

whether a federal question appears on the face of a plaintiff’s complaint.

28

////
3

1

Any defenses based on federal law must generally be raised in the state court action and

2

do not provide a basis for removal. “A case may not be removed to federal court on the basis of a

3

federal defense,...even if the defense is anticipated in the plaintiff’s complaint, and even if both

4

parties admit that the defense is the only question truly at issue in the case.” ARCO Envtl.

5

Remediation, LLC v. Dep’t. of Health & Envtl. Quality of the State of Montana, 213 F.3d 1108,

6

1113 (9th Cir. 2000) (citation and quotation marks omitted); see also Valles v. Ivy Hill Corp., 410

7

F.3d 1071, 1075 (9th Cir. 2005) (“A federal law defense to a state-law claim does not confer

8

jurisdiction on a federal court, even if the defense is that of federal preemption and is anticipated

9

in the plaintiff’s complaint.”) Indeed, federal courts have consistently rejected attempts to

10

premise federal subject matter jurisdiction on the 90-day notice provision of the PTFA. See, e.g.,

11

Parkland Sec., Inc. v. Carey, 2012 WL 159621, at *2 (E.D. Cal. Jan. 18, 2012) (unpublished),

12

adopted by 2012 WL 458433 (E.D. Cal. Feb. 10, 2012) (unpublished); Wescom Credit Union v.

13

Dudley, 2010 WL 4916578, at **2-3 (C.D. Cal. Nov. 22, 2010) (unpublished); SD Coastline LP,

14

2010 WL 4809661, at **2-3; Aurora Loan Servs, LLC v. Martinez, 2010 WL 1266887, at *1

15

(N.D. Cal. Mar. 29, 2010) (unpublished). Such rejection is based on the fact that an argument

16

relying on the PTFA’s notice provision is an attempt to premise the court’s subject matter

17

jurisdiction on a defense or counterclaim.2

18

Furthermore, this action cannot be removed on grounds of diversity jurisdiction. First, the

19

amount in controversy does not exceed $75,000, because plaintiff’s complaint specifically does

20

not seek more than $10,000. (ECF No. 1 at 7.) Second, even if the amount in controversy

21

exceeded $75,000, defendant is a citizen of California, and therefore cannot remove the action

22

from a California state court on the basis of diversity jurisdiction. See 28 U.S.C. § 1441(b) (“Any

23

civil action of which the district courts have original jurisdiction founded on a claim or right

24

arising under the Constitution, treaties or laws of the United States shall be removable without

25
2

26
27
28

Additionally, federal district courts have concluded that the PTFA does not create a federal
private right of action, but provides directives to state courts. See, e.g., Deutsche Bank Nat’l
Trust Co. v. Jora, 2010 WL 3943584, at *1 n.3 (E.D. Cal. Oct. 1, 2010) (unpublished); Zalemba
v. HSBC Bank, USA, Nat’l Ass’n, 2010 WL 3894577, at **2-4 (S.D. Cal. Oct. 1, 2010)
(unpublished).
4

1

regard to the citizenship or residence of the parties. Any other such action shall be removable

2

only if none of the parties in interest properly joined and served as defendants is a citizen of the

3

State in which such action is brought”) (emphasis added).

4

Based on the aforementioned analysis, the court finds that it lacks federal subject matter

5

jurisdiction over plaintiff’s unlawful detainer action brought pursuant to California law.

6

CONCLUSION

7

For the foregoing reasons, IT IS HEREBY RECOMMENDED that:

8

1. The action be REMANDED to the Yuba County Superior Court.

9

2. The Clerk of Court be directed to serve a certified copy of the order on the Clerk of the

10

Yuba County Superior Court, and reference the state case number (15-0000094) in the proof of

11

service.

12

3. The Clerk of Court be directed to vacate all dates and close this case.

13

In light of the above recommendations, IT IS ALSO HEREBY ORDERED that the

14

September 24, 2015 status conference before the undersigned is VACATED.

15

These findings and recommendations are submitted to the United States District Judge

16

assigned to the case, pursuant to the provisions of 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(l). Within fourteen (14)

17

days after being served with these findings and recommendations, any party may file written

18

objections with the court and serve a copy on all parties. Such a document should be captioned

19

“Objections to Magistrate Judge’s Findings and Recommendations.” Any reply to the objections

20

shall be served on all parties and filed with the court within fourteen (14) days after service of the

21

objections. The parties are advised that failure to file objections within the specified time may

22

waive the right to appeal the District Court’s order. Turner v. Duncan, 158 F.3d 449, 455 (9th

23

Cir. 1998); Martinez v. Ylst, 951 F.2d 1153, 1156-57 (9th Cir. 1991).

24
25

IT IS SO ORDERED AND RECOMMENDED.
Dated: May 28, 2015

26
27
28
5