A District Judge refused to permit removal of a Bad Faith case from State Court based on the defense attorney's opinion. The defense attorney submitted an affidavit under oath in that case that even though the plaintiff had pled only "unspecified damages in excess of $15,000 and statutory attorney's fees and costs" in State Court, in his sworn affidavit submitted to the Federal Court the defense attorney expressed his belief that "'it is probable the Plaintiff will seek attorney's fees and costs in the present lawsuit well in excess of $75,000 [the jurisdictional threshold of the amount in controversy for the lawsuit to be removed from State Court in this case].'" Crowley v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 2013 WL 5653362 *1 (M.D. Fla. October 15, 2013). [Emphasis added.] He was probably right, but that did not affect the outcome in this case.
The Federal Judge ruled that the defense did not meet its burden of proof in removing the case from State Court and granted the plaintiff, Ricky Crowley's, motion to remand. The Court declined to give any weight to the defense attorney's affidavit or to the plaintiff Crowley's contrary affidavit on the issue of the amount in controversy, holding that "removability ... is governed by facts (not speculation) ascertainable at the moment of removal." Crowley v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 2013 WL 5653362 *2 (M.D. Fla. October 15, 2013). [Emphasis added.]
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