Diversity suit
News coverage of the civil lawsuit filed by Kobe Bryant's accuser has not demonstrated understanding of federal courts. "Twist in Bryant Rape Case as Accuser Files Lawsuit," in today's New York Times, was the first story I saw that even mentioned this suit was filed in federal rather than state court. I have yet to see any story explain what significance might be found in the decision to file in federal court.
As I recall from Civil Procedure and Federal Courts, one of the purposes of diversity jurisdiction is to prevent bias against out-of-state litigants. But in this case, the plaintiff accuser chose to file in federal court so Bryant does not have to try to remove the case. The USA Today story mentions that the accuser is seekign at least $75,000 but does not mention that that is one of the requirements of diversity jurisdiction.
Meanwhile, the Utah papers were not all over this story. Despite a diligent online search, I found no story in today's Salt Lake Tribune. The Deseret Morning News provided brief wire service coverage here.
As I recall from Civil Procedure and Federal Courts, one of the purposes of diversity jurisdiction is to prevent bias against out-of-state litigants. But in this case, the plaintiff accuser chose to file in federal court so Bryant does not have to try to remove the case. The USA Today story mentions that the accuser is seekign at least $75,000 but does not mention that that is one of the requirements of diversity jurisdiction.
Meanwhile, the Utah papers were not all over this story. Despite a diligent online search, I found no story in today's Salt Lake Tribune. The Deseret Morning News provided brief wire service coverage here.
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