Document 2JebLw99zwVbJLLyqa51jB3D6

flttiteb H>tateg Court of appeals Fbr the Seventh Circuit Chicago, Illinois 60604 Submitted February 6. 2002 Decides! February 15, 2002 Hon. DANIEL A, MAMOU, Circuit Judge Hon. MICHAEL 8, KANNE,. Circuit Judge Hon. DIANE P. WOOD, Circuit Judge m REt GENERA MOTORS. CORPORATION and DA2MLERCHRYSLBR CORPORATION, Petitioners. No. 02-1273 3 Petition for a writ 1 of Mandamus. 3 I 3 No. 0.x C 734 3 3 G. Patrick Murphy, 3 Chief Judge. The Miowing is before the court: PETITION FOB WB1T OF MANDAMUS, filed on February 4, 2002, by counsel for the petitioners. The petitioners, General Motors and .DaimlerChrysler, mk-this court to vacate the order issued by Chief Judge Murphy on January 2$, 2002, remanding to Illinois state court 155 personal injury and wrongful death cases. They argue that ChiefJudge Murphy lacked the authority to enter the remand order because the eases already had bean transferred to the United States District Courtfor the District of Delaware pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 1167(b)(5), for consideration with a Chapter 11 bankruptcy case pending before the court, On December 10, 2001, Judge Wolin, sitting by designation in the District of Delaware, entered an order provisionally transferring the cases to tha District of Delaware. Judge Wolin also scheduled a hearing to consider the pending motion* to transfer and to determine whether federal subject matter jurisdiction exists over the cases, As the Fourth Circuit has acknowledged, a district court can enter a No. 02-3273 2 provisional transfer fixing venue before it and then conduct the neaoasary inquiries before entering a final transfer order. A.M. Robins it Picdttin, 788 F.2d 994,1016' 18 (4th Our. 1988)}. Such a provisional order brings all the pending suits before the transferee court "for the time being,* Id, at 1015. The Decomber 10th provisional transfer order effectively transferred the cases pending in the Southern District ofIllinois to the District.of Delaware* The order contemplated an immediate transfer, and no further action was necessary to effectuate the transfer. Accordingly, the Southern District of Illinois no longer had jurisdiction over the cases, and Chief Judge Morphy lacked the authority'to remand the cases to Illinois state court. The remand order therefore must be recalled m improvidently granted, See In re Continental Casualty Co., 20 F.3d 292, 295 (7th Cir. 1994), We note that on February 8, 2002, Judge Wolin conducted the contemplated bearing and, like Chief Judge Murphy, determined that the federal courts lack subject matter jurisdiction over the cases. Judge Wolin ordered the cases remanded to the state courts from which they were removed. Because, the cases at issue were already before the District of Delaware, the cases are now subject- to Judge WoUn's February 8th remand order. The petitioners, however, have appealed the February 8th order, and the Third Circuit has temporarily stayed the remand order. For the foregoing reasons, IT IS ORDERED that the petition for writ of mandamus is GRANTED. Chief Judge Murphy shall recall his remand. The eases were transferred to the District of Delaware on December 10, 2001, and axe among the cases currently pending before the Third Circuit.