What requirement must be met for a personal injury claim to succeed in federal court?

For a personal injury claim to be successfully pursued in federal court under diversity jurisdiction, it is essential that there be complete diversity between the parties involved. This means that the plaintiff and defendant must be citizens of different states. If either of these parties is a citizen of the same state, then federal court jurisdiction cannot be established based on diversity.

Diversity jurisdiction is specifically designed to provide a neutral forum for parties from different states and to prevent local biases that might arise in state courts. Even though personal injury claims can also arise under federal law in certain instances, the presence of complete diversity is a fundamental requirement when seeking to bring a purely state law claim, like many personal injury cases, before a federal court based on diversity.

The other options are scenarios or contexts that may not necessarily apply to personal injury claims brought under federal court. For example, while the amount in controversy exceeding $75,000 is important to qualify for diversity jurisdiction, it is not sufficient on its own; complete diversity must also be present. The requirement for claims to be based only on federal law pertains to federal question jurisdiction rather than diversity jurisdiction, which is specific to cases involving parties from different states.