Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-caed-1_16-cv-01493/USCOURTS-caed-1_16-cv-01493-0/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 230
Nature of Suit: Rent, Lease, Ejectment
Cause of Action: 28:1443(1) Rent, Lease &amp; Ejectment

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

FPI MANAGEMENT, INC.,

 Plaintiff, 

 v. 

VIRIDIANA LOPEZ AND ARTURO 

AVALOS,

 Defendants.

1:16-cv-1493-LJO-SAB

SUA SPONTE ORDER REMANDING 

ACTION TO STATE COURT

The undersigned revokes any actual or anticipated referral to a Magistrate Judge for the purposes 

of Findings and Recommendations in this case.

On October 6, 2016, Defendants Viridiana Lopez and Arturo Avalos filed a pro se Notice of 

Removal with this Court, seeking to remove an action from the Superior Court for the County of 

Madera. Doc. 1. For the following reasons, the Court sua sponte REMANDS this case to the Superior 

Court of California for the County of Madera.

Under 28 U.S.C. § 1441(a), a defendant may remove an action to federal court if the district 

court has original jurisdiction. Hunter v. Phillip Morris USA, 582 F.3d 1039, 1042 (9th Cir. 2009). If at 

any time before final judgment it appears that the district court lacks subject matter jurisdiction, the case 

shall be remanded. 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c). Federal courts are courts of limited jurisdiction and can 

adjudicate only those cases authorized by the United States Constitution and Congress. Generally, those 

cases involve diversity of citizenship, a federal question, or where the United States is a party. See 

Kokkonen v. Guardian Life Ins. Co., 511 U.S. 375 (1994); Franchise Tax Bd. of State of Cal. v. Constr. 

Laborers Vacation Trust for S. California, 463 U.S. 1, 8 (1983); 28 U.S.C. § 1442. Lack of subject 

matter jurisdiction is never waived and may be raised by the Court sua sponte. Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(h)(3); 

Snell v. Cleveland, Inc., 316 F.3d 822, 826 (9th Cir. 2002). Furthermore, the law is clear in the Ninth 

Case 1:16-cv-01493-LJO-SAB Document 3 Filed 10/06/16 Page 1 of 3
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Circuit that the removal statute should be strictly construed in favor of remand and against removal. 

Harris v. Bankers Life and Cas. Co., 425 F.3d 689, 698 (9th Cir. 2005). Among other things, this means 

that the defendant always has the burden of establishing that removal is proper. California ex rel. 

Lockyer v. Dynegy, Inc., 375 F.3d 831, 838 (9th Cir. 2004). Federal jurisdiction must be rejected if there 

is any doubt as to the right of removal in the first instance. Gaus v. Miles, Inc., 980 F.2d 564, 566 (9th 

Cir. 1992).

In determining the presence or absence of federal question jurisdiction in removal cases, the 

“well-pleaded complaint rule” applies, “which provides that federal jurisdiction exists only when a 

federal question is presented on the face of the plaintiff’s properly pleaded complaint.” Caterpillar Inc. 

v. Williams, 482 U.S. 386, 392 (1987). In the instant case, Defendants are unable to establish federal 

question jurisdiction because the complaint filed in the state court contains a single cause of action for 

unlawful detainer based on California Code of Civil Procedure section 1161a. Unlawful detainer actions 

are strictly within the province of the state courts. See PNC Bank Nat'l Ass'n v. Ahluwalia, No. C 15-

01264 WHA, 2015 WL 3866892, at *4 (N.D. Cal. June 22, 2015) (collecting cases). Therefore, 

Plaintiff’s complaint avoids federal question jurisdiction. A defendant cannot create federal subject 

matter jurisdiction by adding claims or defenses to a notice of removal. Vaden v. Discover Bank, 556 

U.S. 49, 50 (2009) (federal question jurisdiction cannot “rest upon an actual or anticipated 

counterclaim”); Valles v. Ivy Hill Corp., 410 F.3d 1071, 1075 (9th Cir. 2005) (“A federal law defense to 

a state-law claim does not confer jurisdiction on a federal court, even if the defense is that of federal 

preemption and is anticipated in the plaintiff's complaint.”).

The next possible basis for this Court’s jurisdiction is diversity. District courts have diversity 

jurisdiction over “all civil actions where the matter in controversy exceeds the sum or value of $75,000, 

exclusive of interests and costs,” and the action is between “(1) citizens of different States; (2) citizens 

of a State and citizens or subjects of a foreign state; (3) citizens of different States and in which citizens 

or subjects of a foreign state are additional parties; and (4) a foreign state . . . as plaintiff and citizens of 

Case 1:16-cv-01493-LJO-SAB Document 3 Filed 10/06/16 Page 2 of 3
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a State or of different States.” 28 U.S.C. § 1332; see also Geographic Expeditions, Inc. v. Estate of 

Lhotka, 599 F.3d 1102, 1106 (9th Cir. 2010). Defendants cannot establish diversity of citizenship 

jurisdiction in this case. The complaint filed in the underlying unlawful detainer action unequivocally 

states that the amount in controversy is less than $10,000. When a state court complaint affirmatively 

alleges that the amount in controversy is less than the jurisdictional threshold, the party seeking removal 

must prove with “legal certainty” that the jurisdictional amount is met. Guglielmino v. McKee Foods 

Corp., 506 F.3d 696, 699 (9th Cir. 2007); see also Glassical Creations, Inc. v. Canter, No. CV 15-04358 

MMM PJWX, 2015 WL 4127912, at *4 & n. 10 (C.D. Cal. July 7, 2015). Defendants’ notice of removal 

does not provide any basis for a finding that the amount in controversy exceeds the $75,000 threshold. 

The amount in controversy is determined without regard to any setoff or counterclaim to which 

defendant may be entitled. Mesa Indus., Inc. v. Eaglebrook Products, Inc., 980 F. Supp. 323, 326 (D. 

Ariz. 1997). Thus, the amount in controversy is insufficient to provide this Court with diversity 

jurisdiction.

Moreover, in removal cases where the purported basis of jurisdiction is diversity jurisdiction, 

removal is not permitted where a defendant is a citizen of the state in which the plaintiff originally 

brought the action (even if the opposing parties are citizens of different states). See 28 U.S.C. § 1441(b).

Here, Defendants lists their address as 1601 Creekside Drive #246, Madera, California, and do not 

provide any alternative basis for a finding of diverse citizenship. 

Accordingly, the Court REMANDS this case to the Superior Court for the County of Madera for 

all future proceedings.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

Dated: October 6, 2016 /s/ Lawrence J. O’Neill _____ 

UNITED STATES CHIEF DISTRICT JUDGE

Case 1:16-cv-01493-LJO-SAB Document 3 Filed 10/06/16 Page 3 of 3