Craig Hart v. Bank of America, N.A.

MEMORANDUM

Craig and Carole-Pinkney Hart appeal pro se from the district court’s order dismissing their foreclosure action alleging a federal claim under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (“FDCPA”) and various state law claims. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 . We review de novo both a denial of a motion to remand, Sparta Surgical Corp. v. Nat’l Ass’n of Sec. Dealers, Inc., 159 F.3d 1209 ,1211 (9th Cir.1998), and a dismissal on the basis of the doctrine of res judicata, Stewart v. U.S. Bancorp, 297 F.3d 953, 956 (9th Cir. 2002). We affirm.

The district court properly denied plaintiffs’ motion to remand because plaintiffs’ FDCPA claim gave the court federal jurisdiction over the entire action, including state law claims arising out of the same loan transaction and foreclosure proceedings. See 28 U.S.C. § 1367 (allowing discretionary exercise of jurisdiction over state law claims related to federal cause of action); Sparta Surgical Corp., 159 F.3d at 1211-13 (action is properly removed where existence of federal jurisdiction is clear from the face of the complaint, and party may not compel remand by trying to eliminate the federal question upon which removal was…