Defendant Uses ‘Snap Removal’ to Get Tort Case in Federal Court

A tort case filed in Virginia state court by an out-of-state plaintiff was properly removed by the in-state defendant, a federal court said.

A diversity case filed in the defendant’s home state can’t be removed to federal court if the defendant was “properly joined and served,” Judge Norman K. Moon said Nov. 8, for the US District Court for the Western District of Virginia. But the question here was whether the court had jurisdiction because the defendant filed a “snap removal"—it sought removal before it was served a state court summons and complaint. Moon said that it could.

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