Opinion
MASTER FILE 00 Civ. 2843 (LAK), This Doc. Relates to: 02 Civ. 3116 (LAK).
September 5, 2002
PRETRIAL ORDER NO. 96 (Motion of Glenneth Berry)
This action was removed from state court in Mississippi and transferred here by the Multidistrict Panel. Plaintiff's motion to remand was denied on July 25, 2002 by Pretrial Order No. 89. A few weeks later, plaintiff moved to dismiss, stating that she "no longer wishes to proceed with her claim against the defendants in the case." Yet she seeks dismissal without prejudice, thus evidencing a desire to preserve her right to proceed with the claim.
It is reasonably obvious that this motion is an attempt to defeat federal jurisdiction in a case that plaintiff did not wish to see removed because she prefers to proceed in the state courts. No other purpose would be served by seeking dismissal without prejudice, and the veracity of the assertion that she "no longer wishes to proceed with her claim" is highly questionable.
Such efforts, if permitted to succeed, would undermine the entire MDL concept. While the Court is well aware than many plaintiffs would prefer to be in state court, defendants have removal rights that such plaintiffs are not entitled to ignore or circumvent, and the Court will not tolerate such efforts.
In any case, even disregarding what has been said already, plaintiff has given no reason why any dismissal should be without prejudice, particularly if her counsel's statement that she "no longer wishes to proceed with her claim" is true. Accordingly, the motion is denied.
Counsel are cautioned that motions to dismiss without prejudice will be reviewed carefully and that the Court will be alert to any sanctionable behavior that may occur on such applications.
SO ORDERED.