Category: Federal Officer Removal

Federal Officer Removal
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Navy Submarine Manufacturer Successfully Removes Case to Federal Court Under Federal Officer Removal Statute

U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, January 31, 2022

In this matter, plaintiff Michael Moore served in the Navy working as an electronics technician aboard the USS Francis Scott Key from 1965 to 1969. He alleged that he was exposed to asbestos during the construction of the submarine, and sued Electric Boat Corporation, the federal contractor that built the submarine, among other defendants.

The Electric Boat shipyard operated “in accordance with government contracts, in conformance with military specifications, and under Navy oversight.” The …

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Federal Officer Removal / Remand/Removal
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Motion to Remand Granted; Defendants Failed to Timely File Notice of Removal

U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina, Charleston Division, September 8, 2021

In this asbestos action, plaintiff Cynthia Warren commenced an action alleging that her husband, Bobby Warren, developed mesothelioma following exposure to asbestos from several defendants’ products, including Westinghouse. Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §1446(a), Westinghouse filed a Notice of Removal on September 11, 2020. Westinghouse argued that removal was timely as they removed the matter less than thirty days following the plaintiff’s service of supplemental discovery responses. The plaintiff filed a motion …

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Federal Officer Removal / Louisiana / Remand/Removal
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Motion to Remand Denied Under Federal Officer Removal Statute

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, August 26, 2021

In this asbestos action, decedent Salvador Pennino alleged asbestos exposure from working at the Avondale Shipyards. A fact witness deposition took place on January 20, 2021, during which the deponent testified that he observed the decedent hanging ductwork on Lykes Lines vessels. Defendants received the deposition transcript on January 29, 2021, and subsequently filed a Notice of Removal on February 19, 2021. Thereafter, the plaintiffs filed a Motion to Remand, arguing that the …

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Federal Officer Removal / Louisiana
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Defendants Prevail on Removal to Federal Court Based on Federal Officer Removal Statute

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, March 31, 2021

In October 2019, plaintiff Stephen Legendre, filed a lawsuit alleging that he contracted mesothelioma in September 2019. He alleged that his mesothelioma was caused by take-home exposure to asbestos from his father who worked at Avondale from 1943 to 1945.

The defendants removed this matter pursuant to the Federal Officer Removal Statute, 28 U.S.C. § 1442. Thereafter, the plaintiff filed a motion to remand asserting federal jurisdiction is not warranted.

28 U.S.C. § 1442(a)(1) makes removable …

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Federal Officer Removal / Maritime/Admiralty Law / Remand/Removal
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Plaintiff’s Motion to Remand Denied Based on Federal Officer Removal

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, March 16, 2021

The plaintiff filed suit against Avondale and Lamorak Insurance Co. (defendants) in state court on February 12, 2020. The defendants removed the case under the federal officer removal statute alleging that the lawsuit pertains to action by Avondale’s taken pursuant to the direction of a federal officer. By way of background, this case rises out of Harvel A. Landreaux’s (the plaintiff) alleged exposure to asbestos while working as an employee of defendant Avondale …

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Federal Officer Removal / Louisiana / Summary Judgment
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Court of Appeals Affirms Summary Judgment Finding No Evidence Decedent Exposed to Defendants’ Products

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, February 26, 2021

The plaintiffs claim their farther, a mechanical engineer at the NASA Michoud Assembly Facility (MAF), was killed by asbestos products sold and installed by defendants McCarty Corporation and Taylor Seidenbach, Inc.  Deteriorating asbestos and asbestos remediation occurred in the buildings in which the decedent worked.

The plaintiffs appealed the district court’s granting of summary judgment for the defendants concluding that the court found no evidence of decedent’s exposure to respirable asbestos at the MAF.  …

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Federal Officer Removal / Louisiana
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Case Remanded to State Court as Defendants Failed to Show Improper Joinder

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, January 13, 2021

Plaintiff Brent Deaville filed the within action in state court against numerous defendants in January 2020. The plaintiff alleged he contracted mesothelioma as a result of his exposure to asbestos while working as an insulator, plumber/pipefitter and mechanic at several facilities in Louisiana from the 1960s through 1990. On November 12, 2020, defendants Exxon Mobil Corp., Ferguson Enterprises, Inc. and J-M Manufacturing Co., Inc. removed this matter to federal court alleging diversity jurisdiction.…

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Federal Officer Removal / Pennsylvania
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Plaintiffs Successfully Disclaim Naval Exposure, Divesting Federal Court of Subject Matter Jurisdiction

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, October 1, 2020

Plaintiffs David Martincic and Merl Williams alleged that Mr. Martincic was diagnosed with mesothelioma as a result of his exposure to asbestos brought home on the clothing, body, and person of several family members who worked at American Cyanamid in Bridgeville, Pennsylvania from 1946 through the 1970s. The plaintiffs filed suit against 173 defendants, including Foster Wheeler, LLC in the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. In June 2020, Foster Wheeler …

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Federal Officer Removal / Louisiana / Remand/Removal
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Remand Denied as Defendants’ Notice of Removal Deemed Timely and Proper Under Federal Officer Statute

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, September 18, 2020

In this asbestos matter, plaintiff James Becnel contends that he developed lung cancer as a result of his work aboard a Navy vessel while employed at Avondale. The initial complaint was filed in the Civil District Court for the Parish of Orleans on July 22, 2019. In August 2019, the plaintiff testified that he worked aboard a Navy vessel known as the Lykes vessel during his deposition. Notably, he filed a second supplemental …

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Federal Officer Removal / Louisiana / Remand/Removal
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Motion for Reconsideration on Removal in Shipyard Case Granted

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana

The plaintiff, Patricia Jackson, alleges asbestos exposure while employed by Avondale Shipyard between 1970 and 1977. She further alleged asbestos exposure from father’s work clothing while he was employed by Avondale between 1962 and 1975. The plaintiff filed suit against numerous defendants including Huntington Ingalls Incorporated, Albert L. Bossier, Jr., and Lamorak Insurance Company (collectively, the Avondale defendants), Taylor Seidenbach, International Paper, Eagle, Inc., Liberty Mutual Insurance Company, and Hopeman Brothers, Inc. in state court. The case …

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