In an article published in the Fall 2023 edition of the Journal on Emerging Issues in Litigation, John Sear and T. Michael Pangburn, General Counsel of Thor Motor Coach Inc., discuss the misuse of Fed. R. Civ. P. 41(a) when trying to remove the federal question to force a case back to state court.

“It is improper to use Fed. R. Civ. P. 41(a) to dismiss less than the entire action simply to achieve remand. Misuse of Rule 41(a) in this manner threatens to violate a defendant’s right to a federal form, deprive a defendant of the protections of applicable statutes of limitations, and disrupts the court’s orderly administration of its pretrial schedule,” said Sear and Pangburn. “In short, misuse of Rule 41(a) undermines ‘the just, speedy, and inexpensive determination of every action and proceeding.’ It serves no legitimate purpose and should be disallowed.”

To read the full article, click here.