Tag Archives: 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c)

Split Second Circuit Panel Affirms Attorney Fee Sanction Under 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c) Under “Unusual Circumstances,” Where Defendant Continued to Resist a Motion to Remand on Grounds That Federal Courts Widely Rejected After the Original Removal

In The City of New York v. Exxon Mobil Corp., No. 24-1568 (2d Cir. Oct. 3, 2025), a 2-1 panel holds that Exxon could be sanctioned under 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c) for pressing the same grounds for removal that eight U.S. Courts of Appeals had rejected after the original removal. The dissent would hold thatContinue reading “Split Second Circuit Panel Affirms Attorney Fee Sanction Under 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c) Under “Unusual Circumstances,” Where Defendant Continued to Resist a Motion to Remand on Grounds That Federal Courts Widely Rejected After the Original Removal”

Fourth Circuit Splits with Seventh Circuit in Holding That a Court May Not Award Appellate Attorney’s Fees Under 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c)

In Black v. Mantei & Associates, Ltd.. No. 24-1439 (4th Cir. July 30, 2025), the Fourth Circuit holds that the fee-shifting provision applicable to removal petitions, 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c), does not authorize – let alone mandate – attorney’s fees for defending an award of attorney’s fees on appeal, rejecting decisions in the Seventh CircuitContinue reading “Fourth Circuit Splits with Seventh Circuit in Holding That a Court May Not Award Appellate Attorney’s Fees Under 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c)”

En Banc Fifth Circuit Holds That Waiver-Based Remand Orders Are Appealable Under 28 U.S.C. § 1447, Overruling the Circuit’s Long-Standing Contrary Authority

In Abraham Watkins Nichols Agosto Aziz & Stogner v. Festeryga, No. 23-20337 (5th Cir. May 16, 2025) (en banc), the Fifth Circuit unanimously overrules a 45-year-old circuit precedent and holds that an order remanding a removed case based on the defendant’s alleged waiver by participation in a state-court case falls within the court’s appellate jurisdictionContinue reading “En Banc Fifth Circuit Holds That Waiver-Based Remand Orders Are Appealable Under 28 U.S.C. § 1447, Overruling the Circuit’s Long-Standing Contrary Authority”

Eleventh Circuit Splits with Fifth in Holding That Non-Party Removal of a Case to Federal Court Is a Waivable Procedural Defect Subject to the 30-Day Limit Under § 1447(c)

In Wilson v. Hearos, LLC, No. 23-12550 (11th Cir. Feb. 18, 2025), the Eleventh Circuit holds that a plaintiff who failed to challenge a non-party’s removal of an action to federal court under the general removal statute, 28 U.S.C. § 1441(a), within the 30 days provided by 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c) waived his objection. TheContinue reading “Eleventh Circuit Splits with Fifth in Holding That Non-Party Removal of a Case to Federal Court Is a Waivable Procedural Defect Subject to the 30-Day Limit Under § 1447(c)”

Federal Agencies Do Not Have An “Unfettered Right to Litigate in Federal Court” Under 28 U.S.C. § 1442, Holds Seventh Circuit

In Thompson v. Army and Air Force Exchange Service, No. 23-2447 (7th Cir. Jan. 8, 2025), the Seventh Circuit holds that a federal agency that removes an action from state court under 28 U.S.C. § 1442 is not entitled to dismissal in federal court on a finding that the federal court lacks subject-matter jurisdiction, andContinue reading “Federal Agencies Do Not Have An “Unfettered Right to Litigate in Federal Court” Under 28 U.S.C. § 1442, Holds Seventh Circuit”

Fifth Circuit, in Reissued Decision, Expounds on Limits of State’s Parens Patriae Authority to Litigate in Federal Court on Behalf of Suspended Students

In Louisiana State v. Jefferson Parish School Board, No. 22-30143 (5th Cir. Aug. 22, 2023), the Fifth Circuit dismisses the State of Louisiana’s continuation of a case in federal court against a local school board that sought to discipline two student who displayed weapons during remote-learning sessions during the COVID lockdown. (The original decision wasContinue reading “Fifth Circuit, in Reissued Decision, Expounds on Limits of State’s Parens Patriae Authority to Litigate in Federal Court on Behalf of Suspended Students”

Fifth Circuit Rejects “Futility” Exception to 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c) Remand Requirement

In Spivey v. Chitimacha Tribe, No. 22-30436 (5th Cir. Aug. 16, 2023), the Fifth Circuit joins the majority of circuits in holding that there is no “futility” exception to ordering the remand of a case to state court under 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c) when it determines that it lacks subject matter jurisdiction over a removedContinue reading “Fifth Circuit Rejects “Futility” Exception to 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c) Remand Requirement”

Removal to the Wrong Federal District Court Is A Procedural, Not Jurisdictional, Defect According to the Fifth Circuit

In Hinkley v. Envoy Air, Inc., No. 19-10848 (5th Cir. Aug. 4, 2020), the panel is presented with a convoluted problem of removal from state court under 28 U.S.C. § 1441(a) that was filed in the wrong federal district. The panel holds that such a defect is only procedural rather than jurisdictional and was thusContinue reading “Removal to the Wrong Federal District Court Is A Procedural, Not Jurisdictional, Defect According to the Fifth Circuit”