Belton v. Regions Bank NA

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

MIDDLE DISTRICT OF LOUISIANA

WILL J. BELTON CIVIL ACTION

VERSUS

REGIONS BANK NA, ET AL. NO. 25-00086-BAJ-RLB

RULING AND ORDER On March 19, 2025, the Magistrate Judge issued a Report And Recommendation (Doc. 13, the “Report”) recommending that the above- captioned action be remanded to the Nineteenth Judicial District Court for the Parish of East Baton Rouge, State of Louisiana based on lack of subject matter jurisdiction (both federal question and diversity) and various procedural defects in removal. Defendants Regions Bank NA, NB Affordable Housing Inc., Ralph Brockman, Brockman Builders, LLC, and Sunquest Properties Inc. timely raised the alleged procedural defects in removal within 30 days after the filing of the notice of removal under section 28 U.S.C. § 1446(a).1 (Docs. 3, 4, 6). There are no objections to the R&R. Having carefully considered Plaintiff Will Belton’s Notice of Removal (Doc. 1) and Defendants’ unopposed Motions to Remand (Docs. 3, 4, 6), the Court APPROVES the Magistrate Judge’s Report And Recommendation and ADOPTS it

1 The Fifth Circuit has expressly stated that “all removal defects are waivable except for lack of original subject matter jurisdiction.” In re Digicon Marine, Inc., 966 F.2d 158, 160 (5th Cir. 1992). “[A] motion for remand based on procedural defects that is brought more than 30 days after the removal of the action, is outside of the district court’s power to grant.” Schexnayder v. Entergy La., Inc., 394 F.3d 280, 284 (5th Cir. 2004). When a motion to remand raising procedural defects is timely filed, the Court may remand the action on any procedural ground, even those not raised in the motion. See Vasquez v. Pease, No. 14-609, 2014 WL 4072084, at *2 (W.D. Tex. Aug. 15, 2014) (citing Schexnayder, 394 F.3 at 284). as the Court’s opinion in this matter. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED that the above-captioned action be and is hereby immediately REMANDED to the Nineteenth Judicial District Court for the Parish of East Baton Rouge, State of Louisiana. Baton Rouge, Louisiana, this 4th day of June, 2025

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT MIDDLE DISTRICT OF LOUISIANA