Jurisdiction Commons^™

In Search Of The Probate Exception, James E. Pfander, Michael J.T. Downey

Vanderbilt Law Review

As a limit on the power of Article III courts, the probate exception has surely earned its place in the old curiosity shop of federal jurisdictional law. Dating from the early nineteenth century, the exception has been said to derive from various sources, including the lack of federal jurisdiction over ecclesiastical matters, the "law" and "equity" limits of Article III, and the structure of our federal government. The Supreme Court's 2006 decision in Marshall v. Marshall sought to clarify matters, but lower courts continue to debate the breadth of the exception. In this Article, we go in search of the …