Schluetter v. Tesla, Inc.
- Richard Seeborg
- 3:19-cv-08235
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 2
In Schluetter v. Tesla, Judge Demarchi ordered reassignment because the parties had not all consented to magistrate jurisdiction.
Kolja Schluetter and Tesla, Inc.; the case was reassigned from the magistrate judge to a district judge, while Tesla’s motion to compel arbitration remained undecided.
What happened
In Schluetter v. Tesla, Inc., Tesla removed the case from state court and moved to compel arbitration. Kolja Schluetter had not stated whether he consented to or declined magistrate judge jurisdiction.
The court explained that all named parties must consent before a magistrate judge can decide the case. Because the pending motion could dispose of all of Schluetter’s claims and the required consent was incomplete, the case had to be reassigned.
Judge Virginia K. Demarchi ordered the clerk to reassign the case to a district judge. The case could be sent back to her if all parties later consented. The order did not decide Tesla’s motion to compel arbitration.
The detailed version
- Schluetter v. Tesla, Inc. · No. 3:19-cv-08235
- Richard Seeborg
- Jan. 7, 2020
Background
Tesla removed the action from the Superior Court of the County of Santa Clara and moved to compel arbitration. The opinion states that Kolja Schluetter had not indicated whether he consented to or declined jurisdiction by a magistrate judge.
Reason for Reassignment
Under 28 U.S.C. § 636(c)(1), all named parties must consent before a magistrate judge may hear and decide a case. The court determined that the matter appeared to require a decision that could dispose of all of Schluetter’s claims against Tesla in this forum. Because not all parties had consented to magistrate judge jurisdiction, the case had to be reassigned to a district judge.
Order
Judge Virginia K. Demarchi ordered the clerk to reassign the case to a district judge under the court’s Assignment Plan. The order states that, after all parties consent, the case may be reassigned back to the magistrate judge. This order did not rule on Tesla’s motion to compel arbitration or decide the underlying claims.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.