of Vermont introduced legislation to restore the right of removal in all civil cases in which one of the defendants was a citizen of a state other than that in which the suit was filed. Although the House rejected this modest extension of removal and passed a bill to make only minor revisions in the law, Senator Matthew Carpenter of Wisconsin proposed amendments to grant full federal jurisdiction to the United States circuit courts and guarantee the right of removal in any civil case arising under federal law or in which there was diversity of citizenship, with the $500 threshold applying to both categories of cases. The debate in Congress focused on the growing significance of interstate commerce and the economic benefits of a uniform system of justice. The United States House of Representatives accepted that version of the bill, which President Ulysses S. Grant signed into law in March 1875. Consequences Although this broad redefinition of federal jurisdiction prompted surprisingly little comment at the time, the act of 1875 attracted new types of litigation that swelled the caseload of the federal courts and challenged the existing organization of the judiciary. Sources History of the Federal Judiciary, Federal Judicial Center Further reading Kutler, Stanley I. Judicial Power and Reconstruction Politics. Ch. 4, "The Expansion of Power: New Jurisdiction," 143–160. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1968. Wiecek, William M. "The Reconstruction of Federal Judicial Power, 1863-1875." The American Journal of Legal History 13 (1969): 333–359. 1875 in American law United States federal judiciary legislation