A ship-to-shore crane injured a stevedore aboard a vessel docked in navigable waters. Raley & Raley filed the injured worker’s lawsuit in State Court. The Defendant crane owner “removed” the case to Federal Court, thereby attempting to modify the worker’s choice of the court in which to litigate the case. The worker responded that the removal was improper, since it infringed upon his historical right to bring maritime claims in State Court under the “Saving to Suitors” Clause of 28 USC Sec. 1333, as no independent basis of federal jurisdiction existed, such as Federal Question or Diversity of Citizenship. The Federal Court, reminding the Defendant that Federal Courts are courts of limited jurisdiction, agreed with the injured worker, and his attorneys, Raley & Raley, P.C. and remanded the case back to State Court.
