McLaughlin Brothers v. Hallowell

Background

A pair of Ohio brothers who did business as “McLaughlin Brothers” were sued in an Iowa county court over allegedly defective horse sales. The Iowa plaintiffs sued the partnership alone, sought attachment of the partnership’s assets, and obtained garnishment. The partnership and the two brothers later sought to remove the case to federal court on the ground that the brothers were Ohio citizens and the Iowa plaintiffs were Iowa citizens.

Reasoning

The federal court first accepted removal but then remanded the case back to the Iowa court, stating the record lacked evidence that the defendants had been served with notice. The brothers then appeared in state court and asked to be substituted or joined in their individual names and again sought removal. The Iowa trial court denied substitution and refused a second removal. After trials and appeals in Iowa, the state supreme court affirmed a judgment for the Iowa plaintiffs. The U.S. Supreme Court reviewed only whether the state court had denied a federal right. It held that a federal remand order is not reviewable on a writ of error from a state-court judgment, and that the state court had merely followed the federal remand.

Real world impact

The Court dismissed the writ of error, leaving the state-court judgment in place. The decision means the partners could not undo the remand by asking the state court to substitute parties after the federal court’s remand. The opinion treats questions about who is a proper party in a partnership suit as matters of state practice when they do not create a new federal right.