Federal Officer Removal Fails in California
Litigation attorney Eric Alexander authored an article featured in Drug & Device Law discussing a recent case involving the attempted removal of a product liability lawsuit from California state court to federal court under the Federal Officer Removal Statute (FORS). The plaintiff sued both the manufacturer of a defective medical walker and the insurance entities that sold him the walker in state court. The insurance entities tried to remove under FORS arguing they were Medicare Advantage Organizations regulated by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) in providing Medicare benefits. However, the court found no causal nexus between the claims related to the defective walker and the insurance entities' actions taken under CMS direction regarding Medicare benefits. So, despite recent broadening of FORS, removal failed in this case. Mr. Alexander explains that the chances for removal in California product liability cases with non-diverse seller defendants remain low, but lawyers should still examine allegations and facts to determine if FORS removal theories could apply.