Whether a federal district court may dismiss a defamation case for lack of subject matter jurisdiction after removal under the Westfall Act, rather than remand to state court, when the Government does not dispute underlying factual allegations and the court finds no subject matter jurisdiction due to the FTCA's defamation exception

Whether a federal district court may dismiss a defamation case for lack of subject matter jurisdiction after removal under the Westfall Act (28 U.S.C. § 2679(d)), rather than remand to state court pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c), when: The Government does not dispute the underlying factual allegations of defamation, unlike the situation in Osborn v. Haley, 549 U.S. 225 (2007); The district court explicitly finds it lacks subject matter jurisdiction due to the Federal Tort Claims Act's exception for defamation claims (28 U.S.C. § 2680(h)); and The allegedly defamatory statements —unauthorized medical diagnoses and baseless criminal accusations made by a government attorney in a legal filing —are so far outside any legitimate scope of employment that they cannot reasonably be considered within official conduct. 2 11435407.1.5-267