Ore. Court Remands Claims, Rejects Diversity Jurisdiction Argument

PORTLAND, Ore. -- Deeming it a "close call," a federal court has decided to remand the claims of an asbestos plaintiff, saying that the removing defendant had failed to carry the burden of proving diversity existed. Newman v. Crown Cork & Seal Co., et al., No. 07-1533-JO (D. Ore.).

In a Feb. 11 opinion, the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon found that the activities of the defendant the plaintiff claimed defeated diversity jurisdiction were not limited to just one state.

Claude Newman filed his asbestos-related claims in the Multnomah County Circuit Court. Newman, however, had …