Federal jurisdiction in civil matters; amount in dispute where one claim is brought only conditionally: for determining jurisdiction, only the claims actually and unconditionally pending before the lower court and decided by it are relevant; statements made before the peace office are immaterial. A claim raised solely subsidiarily or conditionally does not enter the amount in dispute unless the condition occurs and the claim becomes justiciable. If the unconditional principal claim does not reach the jurisdictional threshold, the Federal Court lacks competence, even if a related counterclaim would otherwise satisfy the threshold; a mere prejudicial relationship cannot create jurisdiction where the condition for the ancillary claim failed.