Opinion
ORDER DISMISSING DEFENDANTS TOBACCO INSTITUTE, INC. AND COUNCIL FOR TOBACCO RESEARCH
PHYLLIS HAMILTON, District Judge.
Plaintiff filed this action in January 2004 in the Superior Court of California. It was removed to this court in March 2004, and plaintiff filed a motion to remand. Plaintiff argued that removal was improper based on defendants' failure to obtain consent to the removal of all the defendants that had been served. Plaintiff claimed that non-joining defendants The Tobacco Institute ("Tobacco Institute") and the Council for Tobacco Research U.S.A. ("CTR") had been properly served before the filing of the notice of removal. Defendants argued, however, and the court agreed, that Tobacco Institute and CTR had not been properly served. The court denied the motion to remand.
The defendants remaining in the case filed a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim. On August 11, 2004, the court granted the motion. As of that date, plaintiff had not filed a proof of service of the summons and complaint on Tobacco Institute or CTR. Accordingly, in the same order, the court ordered plaintiffs to show cause why Tobacco Institute and CTR should not be dismissed for failure to serve. On August 19, 2004, plaintiff responded with a request that the court enter judgment in favor of all defendants.
Accordingly, it is hereby ORDERED that defendants Tobacco Institute and CTR are DISMISSED for failure to serve the summons and complaint within the time permitted under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(m).
IT IS SO ORDERED.