Federal Judge Remands Westlake Workers’ Chemical Exposure Suits for Failing to Meet $75,000 Threshold

BATON ROUGE, La. — A federal judge in Louisiana has remanded to state court coordinated lawsuits filed by workers claiming chemical exposures at a Westlake Vinyls Co. plant, saying the individual claims fail to meet the $75,000 jurisdictional threshold.

Chief Judge Brian A. Jackson of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana issued the remand order Dec. 9, finding that the removing defendants also failed to prove federal subject matter jurisdiction.

Judge Jackson declined to consider Westlake’s new exhibits or facts asserted in opposition to plaintiff’s motion to remand, and said that the initial pleadings by lead …