Opinion ID: 613226
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Burden of Proof and Evidentiary Standard under CAFA

Text: Jurisdictional determinations should be made largely on the basis of readily available information. S. REP. NO. 109-14, at 44, 2005 U.S.C.C.A.N. 3, 38; accord Abrego Abrego v. The Dow Chem. Co., 443 F.3d 676, 692 (9th Cir. 2006); Hirschbach v. NVE Bank, 496 F.Supp.2d 451, 460 (D.N.J.2007). The court has wide, but not unfettered, discretion to determine what evidence to use in making its determination of jurisdiction. Coury, supra, 85 F.3d at 249; accord Preston II, 485 F.3d at 817; see, e.g., Preston v. Tenet Healthsys. Mem'l Med. Ctr., Inc., 463 F.Supp.2d 583, 592-93 (E.D.La.2006) (district court ordered the defendants to produce additional evidence regarding the citizenship of the putative class). This court has held that the party objecting [6] to CAFA jurisdiction must prove that the CAFA exceptions to federal jurisdiction divests the district court of subject matter jurisdiction. Preston II, supra, 485 F.3d at 813-14; see also Serrano v. 180 Connect, Inc., 478 F.3d 1018, 1024 (9th Cir.2007); Frazier v. Pioneer Ams. LLC, 455 F.3d 542, 546 (5th Cir. 2006). Here, the Insurance Companies bore the burden of proof as to each element of the local controversy and home state mandatory abstention provisions of CAFA. See, e.g., Preston II, 485 F.3d at 813. Since both of the two mandatory abstention provisions require proof, by a preponderance of the evidence, that two-thirds or more of the members of the proposed class are citizens of the state where the action is filed, the dispositive issue here is whether the Insurance Companies proved the two-thirds element of the CAFA mandatory abstention provisions by a preponderance of the evidence. See 28 U.S.C. § 1332(d)(4)(A)(i)(I); 28 U.S.C. § 1332(d)(4)(B).