Problem: A pedestrian initiated a tort action in State A federal court against a driver for personal injuries he sustained from a collision with the driver's truck in State A. The pedestrian sought $50,000 in compensatory damages and $1 million in punitive damages.
Assume that in State A there is a statute that requires plaintiffs to have the court's permission before they can seek punitive damages in their complaints. Federal Rule 8(a) however, the rule governing the content of complaints in federal court, does not require such permission from federal judges and instructs pleaders to include "a demand for the relief sought." Upon receiving the complaint, the driver objected that the pedestrian's request for punitive damages was made without the court's permission and thus must be stricken from the complaint based on the State A statute.
Must the federal court adhere to the State A rule and require the pedestrian to obtain its permission to seek punitive damages?