Michael Barnhill v. Mountain Valley Pipeline, LLC, et al.

Summary

The court explains its decision granting Michael Barnhill’s motion to remand a West Virginia retaliatory-discharge action against Mountain Valley Pipeline and related defendants. It holds that the Pipeline Safety Act does not completely preempt Barnhill’s state-law wrongful-discharge claim, emphasizing the Act’s preservation of tort liability and the absence of clear congressional intent to create an exclusive federal cause of action. The court denies attorney’s fees and costs because the defendants had an objectively reasonable basis for removal.

Holdings

1. The Federal Pipeline Safety Act does not completely preempt Barnhill's West Virginia wrongful-discharge claim, because defendants did not show that Congress clearly intended to extinguish the state-law claim and replace it with an exclusive federal cause of action.
2. Because the state-law wrongful-discharge claim was not completely preempted and no federal question appeared on the face of the complaint, the action had to be remanded to state court.
3. Barnhill was not entitled to costs and attorney fees under 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c) because defendants had an objectively reasonable basis for removal.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the Federal Pipeline Safety Act completely preempts Barnhill's West Virginia retaliatory-discharge claim so as to create federal-question jurisdiction and permit removal.
2. Whether the Pipeline Safety Act's interstate-pipeline safety preemption provision, 49 U.S.C. § 60104(c), displaces the state-law tort claim despite the Act's savings clause preserving tort liability under 49 U.S.C. § 60120(c).
3. Whether Barnhill was entitled to costs and attorney fees under 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c) after the remand.

Disposition

remanded