Civil Procedure - Federal Framework
Civil Procedure in this exam is the federal-court framework: subject-matter and personal jurisdiction, venue, pleading, discovery, dispositive motions, trial, and preclusion. The questions reward issue order: ask whether a court can hear the claim before asking whether the claim survives.
Jurisdiction, venue, and removal
- Subject-matter jurisdiction: federal question under 28 U.S.C. § 1331, or diversity under § 1332 with complete diversity and more than $75,000.
- Personal jurisdiction: minimum contacts plus fair play; general jurisdiction where defendant is at home; specific jurisdiction where the claim arises from purposeful availment.
- Venue: a district where any defendant resides, where events occurred, or where property is located; removal requires original jurisdiction and timely filing.
Pleadings and disposition
- A complaint needs a plausible claim, not detailed facts; Rule 12 motions challenge form or substance.
- Discovery is relevant and proportional; summary judgment requires no genuine dispute of material fact.
- Preclusion requires final judgment on the merits, same parties or privies, and same claim or issue. Erie requires federal courts to apply state substantive law and federal procedural law.
Worked example
P, a Louisiana citizen, sues D, a Texas citizen, in Louisiana federal court for $80,000 on a state contract claim. D impleads D2, a Louisiana citizen. The court lacks diversity because P and D2 are both Louisiana citizens, and no federal question appears. Supplemental jurisdiction cannot cure a missing original jurisdictional basis for the action. The court should dismiss or require severance.
Traps
Do not confuse venue with jurisdiction. Do not assume removal is available merely because a state court could hear the case. Watch the amount-in-controversy rule: it is judged from the complaint unless legal certainty shows otherwise.