Chambers v. Nasco, Inc.

Holding that courts "may bar from the courtroom a criminal defendant who disrupts a trial" may "assess attorney fees when a party has acted in bad faith, vexatiously, wantonly, or for oppressive reasons," and "may act sua sponte to dismiss a suit for failure to prosecute"

Caterpillar Inc. v. Lewis

Holding that "diversity became complete" when a nondiverse party settled and was dismissed from the case and that therefore "[t]he jurisdictional defect was cured"

Quackenbush v. Allstate Ins. Co.

Holding that an abstention-based remand is not a remand for “lack of subject matter jurisdiction” for purposes of §§ 1447(c) and (d)

Business Guides v. Chromatic Comm. Enterprises

Holding that Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 11 was not a fee-shifting provision because Rule 11 sanctions were not “tied to the outcome of litigation,” instead turning on whether a “specific filing” was well founded, and shifted the costs of a “discrete” portion of the litigation rather than the litigation as a whole

Whitaker v. American Telecasting, Inc.

Holding that a "summons with notice may serve as an initial pleading under section 1446(b)."

Ritchey v. Upjohn Drug Co.

Holding that only cases that become removable "sometime after the initial commencement of the action" are "barred by the one-year exception"

Eastway Const. Corp. v. City of New York

Holding Fed.R.Civ.P. 11 requires sanctions against "an attorney and/or his client when it appears that a pleading has been interposed for any improper purpose, or where, after reasonable inquiry, a competent attorney could not form a reasonable belief that the pleading is well grounded in fact and is warranted by existing law or a good faith argument for the extension, modification, or reversal of existing law."

Baffa v. Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette Secs. Corp.

Holding that "class certification is inappropriate where a putative class representative is subject to unique defenses which threaten to become the focus of the litigation"

Schlaifer Nance Co., Inc. v. Est. of Warhol

Holding that a motion describing the sanctionable conduct and the source of authority for the sanction provided notice

Brierly v. Alusuisse Flexible Packaging Inc.

Holding that the one-year rule only applies to cases that were not removable based on the initial pleading

Section 1332 - Diversity of citizenship; amount in controversy; costs

Holding district court has jurisdiction over action between diverse citizens "where the matter in controversy exceeds the sum or value of $75,000"

Section 1331 - Federal question

Finding that in order to invoke federal question jurisdiction, a plaintiff's claims must arise "under the Constitution, laws, or treaties of the United States."

Section 1441 - Removal of civil actions

Holding that “[a]ny civil action of which the district courts have original jurisdiction founded on a claim or right arising under the ... laws of the United States shall be removable without regard to the citizenship or residence of the parties.”

Section 1334 - Bankruptcy cases and proceedings

Granting "exclusive jurisdiction" to a federal court handling a bankruptcy case "of all the property, wherever located, of the debtor as of the commencement of such case, and of property of the estate"

Rule 11 - Signing Pleadings, Motions, and Other Papers; Representations to the Court; Sanctions

Holding an "unrepresented party" to the same standard as an attorney

Section 1447 - Procedure after removal generally

Holding that with exceptions not relevant here, "[a]n order remanding a case to the State court from which it was removed is not reviewable on appeal or otherwise"

Section 1446 - Procedure for removal of civil actions

Granting a defendant 30 days to remove after receipt of the first pleading that sets forth a removable claim

Section 1442 - Federal officers or agencies sued or prosecuted

Granting removal power to "[a]ny officer of the United States . . . or person acting under him"

Section 1452 - Removal of claims related to bankruptcy cases

Granting removal power to any “party” in a bankruptcy case

Section 3017 - Demand for relief