Rock Island Nat. Bank v. J.S. Keator Lumber Co.

• Decision Date: 31 October 1892
• Citation: 52 F. 897
• Parties: ROCK ISLAND NAT. BANK v. J. S. KEATOR LUMBER CO. et al.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Northern District of Illinois

52 F. 897

ROCK ISLAND NAT. BANK v. J. S. KEATOR LUMBER CO. et al.

United States Circuit Court, N.D. Illinois, Southern Division.

October 31, 1892

Sweeney & Walker, for complainant.

W. H Moore, for the J. S. Keator Lumber Company.

Miller & Starr, for Thompson & Root.

BLODGETT District Judge.

This cause was originally commenced in the circuit court of Rock Island county, in this state, and removed to this court on the petition of the defendants Thompson & Root. A motion is now made to remand the same upon two grounds: First, that the petition for removal was not filed in apt time; second, that no separable controversy is shown in the case which justifies the removal of the case in behalf of the defendants Thompson & Root. The record shows that the defendants Thompson & Root were brought into the court as nonresidents by publication of notice under the laws of the state of Illinois in regard to chancery practice; that, by the published notice, these defendants were required to appear in the case on the first day of the then next September term of said court, which was on the 5th day of September, 1892; that said notice was published in time to require the defendants to make answer at the time mentioned; that no appearance was entered by said defendants, or answer or plea filed, at the time required by the notice, and under the statute, but that, on the 13th day of September, a stipulation in writing was made and filed in the cause between the complainant and these defendants, by which these defendants were given 10 days' further time in which to plead in the cause; and the court, in pursuance of such stipulation, entered an order extending the time for the defendants to plead 10 days from the date of such stipulation; and that, on the 22d day of September, the said defendants filed their petition and bond for the removal of the cause to this court.

Section 3 of the act of August 13, 1888, determining the jurisdiction of the circuit courts of the United States, and regulating the removal of cases from the state courts, (25 St.at Large p. 433,) provides that a defendant desiring to remove a cause from a state court to the federal court may do so 'at the time or any time before the defendant is required by the laws of the state, or the rule of the state court in which such suit is brought, to answer or plead to the declaration or complaint of the plaintiff. ' Section 16, c. 22, Rev. St Ill.,...