Chilton v. Hartford Life and Accident Insurance Company
Filing
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ORDER OF REMAND. Signed by Honorable R Bryan Harwell on 6/11/2013. (hcic, )
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF SOUTH CAROLINA
FLORENCE DIVISION
Dr. Rubert G. Chilton,
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Plaintiff,
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v.
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Hartford Life and Accident Insurance
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Company,
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Defendant.
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____________________________________)
Civil Action No.: 4:13-cv-01427-RBH
ORDER OF REMAND
Under 28 U.S.C. § 1441(a), a defendant is permitted to remove a case to federal court if the
court would have had original jurisdiction over the matter. District courts have original jurisdiction
“where the matter in controversy exceeds the sum or value of $75,000, exclusive of interest and
costs, and is between . . . citizens of different States.” 28 U.S.C. § 1332(a)(1). Removal statutes
are strictly construed against removal, and any doubts concerning the propriety of removal must be
resolved in favor of retained state court jurisdiction. Marshall v. Manville Sales Corp., 6 F.3d 229,
232 (4th Cir. 1993). In addition, “[t]he party seeking removal bears the burden of demonstrating
that removal jurisdiction is proper.” In Re Blackwater Security Consulting, LLC, 460 F.3d 576, 583
(4th Cir. 2006) (citation omitted). This includes establishing compliance with the removal statute
requirements. See Marler v. Amoco Oil Co., 793 F. Supp. 656, 658-59 (E.D.N.C. 1992). Courts
must narrowly interpret removal jurisdiction because of the significant federalism concerns that are
raised by removing proceedings from state court. Id. Thus, all doubts are resolved in favor of
remand. See Shamrock Oil & Gas Corp. v. Sheets, 313 U.S. 100, 108-09 (1941); see also Mulcahey
v. Columbia Organic Chems. Co., Inc., 29 F.3d 148, 151 (4th Cir. 1994).
In the instant matter, Defendant removed this case from the South Carolina Court of
Common Pleas for Horry County pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 1441 and 1446. Defendant based federal
jurisdiction on diversity jurisdiction pursuant to §1332. However, Plaintiff did not specify any
monetary amount of damages or clearly allege the jurisdictional amount in the Complaint, and
Defendant’s notice of removal failed to allege facts adequate to establish that the amount in
controversy exceeds the jurisdictional amount.
Because the amount in controversy was unclear and this Court may have lacked diversity
jurisdiction, the Court entered an Order instructing Defendant to brief the Court and show cause why
this case should not be remanded to the State court for the foregoing reasons. The Court also
instructed Plaintiff to file a response not later than five calendar days thereafter including a
clarification as to whether Plaintiff intended to pursue, at the time of filing the original complaint,
damages in excess of the jurisdictional amount of $75,000. See JTH Tax, Inc. v. Frashier, 624 F.3d
635, 638 (4th Cir. 2010) (“[T]he ‘sum claimed by the plaintiff controls’ the amount in controversy
determination.” (quoting St. Paul Mercury Indem. Co. v. Red Cab Co., 303 U.S. 283, 288 (1938)));
Wiggins v. N. Am. Equitable Life Assurance Co., 644 F.2d 1014, 1017 (4th Cir. 1981) (“Ordinarily
the jurisdictional amount is determined by the amount of the plaintiff’s original claim, provided that
the claim is made in good faith.”). The Court stated that “[i]f Plaintiff did not intend to pursue
damages adequate to satisfy the jurisdictional threshold at the time of filing and if Plaintiff stipulates
to such limitation having a binding effect, the Court will remand this matter to state court.” [Docket
Entry # 5.]
On June 5, 2013, Plaintiff, with the consent of Defendant, “irrevocably stipulate[d] that the
amount in controversy in this matter was, at the time of filing this suit in the Court of Common
Pleas[] for Horry County, South Carolina, limited to no more than Seventy Four Thousand Nine
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Hundred Ninety-Nine Dollars ($74,999.00).” [Doc. # 9.] Plaintiff further stipulated that he “will
at no time move to amend the complaint to seek an amount in excess of $74,999.00, and shall not
otherwise ask for damages in excess of that amount.” Id.
Conclusion
Based on the foregoing, this case is hereby REMANDED to the South Carolina Court of
Common Pleas for Horry County, South Carolina. A certified copy of this Order of Remand shall
be mailed by the Clerk of this Court to the Clerk of the Court of Common Pleas, Horry County,
South Carolina.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
s/ R. Bryan Harwell
R. Bryan Harwell
United States District Judge
Florence, South Carolina
June 11, 2013
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