NFIB has filed an amicus brief with the United States Supreme Court in the case of Enbridge Energy, LP, et al. v. Dana Nessel, Attorney General of Michigan. The central issue in this case is the procedural time limit established by Section 1446(b), which gives defendants 30 days to remove a case from state to federal court.
Beth Milito, Vice President and Executive Director of NFIB’s Small Business Legal Center, commented on the matter: “Congress has provided small business defendants with the right to remove a case from state to federal court when federal jurisdiction exists. There are circumstances when the normal deadline for removal must be extended to protect the rights of defendants. As this case demonstrates, one of those situations is when plaintiffs use procedural gamesmanship and lawsuit manipulation to avoid federal jurisdiction. NFIB urges the Court to recognize that there are equitable exceptions to the removal time limit so that important federal questions can be considered in federal court.”
The amicus brief was filed jointly with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and argues two main points: first, that the Sixth Circuit erred in its interpretation of Section 1446(b) by allowing states to prevent federal jurisdiction through procedural tactics; and second, that it was incorrect for the lower court to apply a “presumption against removal.”
NFIB’s Small Business Legal Center continues its work representing small business interests in courts across the country and at the Supreme Court level.
