How has the allocation of jurisdiction between federal and state courts shifted?
This allocation has been of central concern to the com-mittee. During the past 10 years, Congress has sought frequently to create federal court jurisdiction in areas traditionally exercised primarily by the state courts. This often occurs with respect to specific criminal activity and has led to many debates and state-federal conferences concerning federalization. But “federalizing” a cause of action also can be applied generally when Congress creates federal jurisdiction for traditionally state court civil actions. The Federal-State Jurisdiction Committee has studied numerous proposals that would shift litigation from the state courts to the federal courts. A guiding principle for us has been the view of the Judicial Conference as stated in the Long Range Plan for the Federal Courts. Congress should be encouraged to conserve the federal courts as a distinct judicial forum of limited jurisdiction. While certain criminal and civil actions occasionally may justify expansion of federal ju
