Brown et al v. Dolgencorp, LLC

Filing 4

ORDER, JUDGMENT and DECREE of the court that the plaintiffs have until 9/14/2012, to amend the complaint to allege 1332 jurisdiction sufficiently, otherwise this cause shall be dismissed without prejudice, as further set out in order. Signed by Honorable Judge Myron H. Thompson on 9/4/12. (djy, )

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE UNITED STATES FOR THE
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF ALABAMA, SOUTHERN DIVISION

DAWN AND GREG BROWN,
as parents and next of
friends of A.B., a minor,
Plaintiffs,
v.
DOLGENCORP, LLC,
a corporation,
Defendant.

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CIVIL ACTION NO.
1:12cv735-MHT
(WO)

ORDER
The

allegations

of

the

plaintiffs'

complaint

are

insufficient to invoke this court's jurisdiction under 28
U.S.C. § 1332.

To invoke jurisdiction based on diversity,

a complaint must distinctly and affirmatively allege each
party's citizenship.

McGovern v. American Airlines, Inc.,

511 F. 2d 653, 654 (5th Cir. 1975) (per curiam).* 28 U.S.C.
§ 1332(c) provides that a corporation shall be deemed a
citizen,

first,

of

all

States

by

which

it

has

been

*In Bonner v. Prichard, 661 F.2d 1206, 1209 (11th
Cir. 1981) (en banc), the Eleventh Circuit Court of
Appeals adopted as binding precedent all of the decisions
of the former Fifth Circuit handed down prior to the
close of business on September 30, 1981.

incorporated and, second,

of the State where it has its

principal place of business.

To invoke jurisdiction based

on diversity in a case in which a corporation is a party,
it is thus necessary to allege distinctly and affirmatively
all

the

States

by

which

the

corporation

has

been

incorporated and the State in which the corporation has its
principal place of business.

American Motorists Ins. Co.

v. American Employers' Ins. Co., 600 F.2d 15, 16 and n.1
(5th Cir. 1979) (per curiam).

The plaintiffs' complaint

fails to allege sufficiently the citizenship of defendant
Dolgencorp, LLC.
***
It is therefore the ORDER, JUDGMENT, and DECREE of the
court that the plaintiffs have until September 14, 2012, to
amend

the

complaint

to

allege

§

1332

jurisdiction

sufficiently, see 28 U.S.C. § 1653; otherwise, this cause
shall be dismissed without prejudice.
DONE, this the 4th day of September, 2012.

/s/ Myron H. Thompson
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE