Fla. Court Allows Asbestos Plaintiff to Amend Complaint to Include Allegations that Will Provide Personal Jurisdiction

TAMPA, Fla. –– A Florida federal court has sua sponte granted an asbestos plaintiff the opportunity to amend his complaint to include specific allegations that provide the court with a basis for exercising personal jurisdiction over each named defendant, reasoning that the plaintiff did not anticipate removal predicated upon federal officer jurisdiction.

In the Jan. 12 order, the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida provided guiding principles for the plaintiff moving forward so that the factual allegations would support general or specific prongs of Florida’s long-arm statutes.

Marc Killam asserted the claims, contending that while serving as …