Whether to file or maintain a litigation in state or federal court can be an important decision for litigants. In personal injury cases, some plaintiffs’ counsel prefer to file their cases in state court, while many corporate defendants prefer to remove cases from state to federal court. Whether a case can be removed to federal court requires application of the federal removal statute, 28 U.S.C. §1441. Unless the case presents an issue of federal law, a case may only be removed to federal court if complete diversity exists and the amount in controversy exceeds $75,000.

In cases where diversity jurisdiction is the only basis for removal, defendants seeking to remove the case must also be cognizant of the “forum defendant rule,” 28 U.S.C. §1441(b)(2). Under the forum defendant rule, a diversity jurisdiction-only case may not be removed to federal court if any of the defendants “properly joined and served” is a citizen of the state in which the action was brought. The reasoning behind the forum defendant rule is that “forum defendants” do not need the protections of federal court since they are already in their home jurisdiction.