Subject Matter Jurisdiction Flashcards
To hear a case, a federal court must have what types of jurisdiction?
- SMJ and
- PJ
What are the types of federal subject matter jurisdiction?
- Federal Question
- Diversity
- Supplemental
- Removal
Subject Matter Jurisdiction
Courts power over subject matter of suit
- Fed. Ct. is court of limited jurisdiction,
- case must fall within express stated category of Article III.
- (I) Fed Q or (2) Diversity
Federal Question Jurisdiction - Elements
- A well pleaded complaint AND
- Federal Question is in dispute
Federal Question - Well Plead Complaint Rule
What one would naturally & appropriately plead in complaint
- Consider only elements of the claim, NOT anticipatory defenses based on federal law
- Don’t consider answers or counterclaims
- Not State Laws incorporating Federal Std. - Arises under state law not Fed. Law
Exclusive Federal Question Jurisdiction
Arise under Copyright Act & Patent Act
Diversity of Citizenship Jurisdiction
∏ must show:
(1) complete diversity of citizenship &
(2) AIC satisfied (exceeds $75 K)
What is complete Diversity ?
No P and D are citizens of the same state
- Diversity is determined by where P is domiciled at the commencement of the suit (Day action filed)
Citizenship of Individuals
Domicile (Can Only have 1 - True, fixed, perm. home), not residence
Elements
- Physical Presence in state, and
- Intent to remain for indefinite future - determined by subj. intent of person
- Court considers voting, car registration, paying of taxes, family, etc.
Citizenship of Corporations
Citizen where (Can have more then 1):
- State of incorporation, and
- Principal Place of Business (Nerve Center) - Where officers conduct executive decisions
Citizenship of Unincorporated Associations
Citizenship of every individual member
Citizenship - Representative Actions
Historically - Citizenship of the Representative
- Minors, Incompetents & Decedents - Citizenship of the Represented Party NOT representative
- Class Action - Citizenship of the named members of the class
Citizenship of US citizen domiciled abroad
Can’t be sued/sue under Div. Juris. of Fed. Ct. MUST be heard in state court
Citizenship of Permanent Resident Alien
Citizen of state where domiciled
Alienage Jurisdiction
Ct has diversity jurisdiction between citizen & Alien NOT b/w 2 aliens
Amount in Controversy
∏ must have GF claim (financial injury) that exceeds $75K exclusive of int. & costs
- Good Faith Requirement - There must be some possibility of recovering over $75K
- Dismissed if there’s a legal certainty that claim will NOT exceed $75K
Equit. Relief - Injunction, valued at (1) value of harm to ∏ or (2) Cost of compliance for ▵
Can plaintiffs add claims together to meet the AIC requirements ?
Multiple Plaintiffs
Aggregation of Claims
- Multiple ∏s - No, each must have a claim that exceeds $75K
- Exception: Joint Interests (Joint Ownership)
Can plaintiffs add claims together to meet the AIC requirements ?
Plaintiff has multiple claims against single Defendant
∏ has mult. claims against single ▵ - Can add claims together to meet AIC requirement
Can plaintiffs add claims together to meet the AIC requirements ?
Plaintiff has multiple claims against multiple Defendants
∏ has claims against Multiple ▵s - ∏ can’t aggregate claims against multiple ▵s
What type of cases wont federal court hear ?
Fed. court won’t hear
(1) Divorce,
(2) Alimony,
(3) Child Cust.,
(4) Probate of Estate
What does Supplemental Jurisdiction allow?
A claim falling outside of federal question or diversity jurisdiction (e.g. st. law claims)
- Can piggy back on a claim that does have federal jurisdiction
What are the steps to evaluating supplemental jurisdiction?
- Does the claim seeking SJ arise from the same trans. or occurrence as another claim falling w/in Fed. Q or Div.
- If the anchor claim is there in diversity
- P can’t use SJ to sue third party D or stacked parties
- Fed. Court may decline jurisdiction if:
- Sup. claim involves a novel or complex state law issue
- Supp. claim subst. predominates over the fed. quest. or div. claim
- The court has dismissed the anchor claim
- In exceptional circ., where other compelling reasons exist
What is the test for Supplemental Jurisdiction ?
Test - Claim must share a common nucleus of operative fact w/ claim that satisfied Fed. SMJ & got case into federal court
- Common Nucleus of Op. Fact - Additional claim arises out of the Same transaction or occurrence
What are the types of Supplemental Jurisdiction ?
- Pendant Jurisdiction AND
- Ancillary Jurisdiction
What is Pendant Jurisdiction?
∏ asserts proper claim & attaches another claim that has no basis for juris
- If additional claim would destroy complete diversity in Diversity Case - NO Supp. Juris.
- ∏ can use supplemental jurisdiction to meet the AIC requirement in Diversity case
What is Ancillary Jurisdiction?
Claims asserted by ▵ or additional Parties that don’t have independant basis for juris.
- No limitations - Any Party other then ∏ can overcome lack of complete diversity or AIC in Diversity & Federal Question cases
Supplemental Jurisdiction - Court Discretion
Fed. Ct. can decline to exercise Supplemental Juris. if:
- State law claim predominates
- Complex claim of state law
- Original claim dismissed, or
- Other compelling reasons or exceptional circumstances
How is subject matter jurisdiction waived?
Can’t be wiaved or agreed to by the parties
What is the key inquiry in federal question jurisdiction?
Is there a federal question in the plaintiff’s complaint ?
For diversity actions, when is citizenship measured?
Citizenship is measured at the time of filing
When is complete diversity not required for diversity jurisdiction?
in class action lawsuits if:
- There are more than 100 members in the P’s class
- AIC is greater than 5 million dollars AND
- Any single member of the class is diverse from any single D
How does an amended complaint impact diversity ?
Diversity is re-evaluated at the time of the amendment
Where is a corp.’s principal place of business?
Where the executives do their bus.
- Nerve center test
Diferentiate b/w SMJ, PJ and Venue
- SMJ - whether you can sue in fed court
- PJ - The state where you can sue
- Venue - What judicial district you can sue in
