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McPhail v. Deere & Co.

Where federal jurisdiction is contested, proponent must prove jurisdictional facts by preponderance of evidence, after which action may be dismissed only in face of legal certainty that damages would be less than jurisdictional minimum (clarifying rule in light of "jurisprudential mess"); tractor's warning sticker implied that carefully starting vehicle in neutral was safe and thus failed to overcome dangerous condition associated with bypassing starter circuitry.

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Before TACHA, EBEL and McCONNELL, Circuit Judges.

In June of 2004, Willis Ray McPhail, a Kiowa County, Oklahoma farmer, was killed when he started his tractor by bypassing its malfunctioning circuitry. When it started, the tractor suddenly lurched backward and ran him over, inflicting fatal injuries. His widow, Barbara Jean McPhail, brought suit in state court on her own behalf and on behalf of his estate against Deere & Co. (“Deere”), the manufacturer of the tractor. After the case was removed to federal court, the district court granted summary judgment in favor of Deere. Although it concluded that there was sufficient evidence to go to a jury regarding whether the tractor was unreasonably dangerous, as that term is used in Oklahoma, it found that a sticker affixed to the tractor provided sufficient warning to cure the defects in the tractor’s design. We disagree, and reverse the grant of summary judgment. Mrs. McPhail also appeals the district court’s denial of her motion to remand the case to state court. She argues that Deere has failed to establish the amount in controversy and that the parties are no longer diverse because of the identification of “John Doe” defendants. We examine whether diversity jurisdiction exists, and conclude that it does.

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