State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company v. Cockram et al

Filing 16

OPINION AND ORDER directing plaintiff to file a Supplement to the Complaint within 21 days of this Opinion and Order setting forth a sufficient factual basis for the citizenship of each defendant. The Court will defer entry of the Case Management and Scheduling Order pending the filing of the supplement. Signed by Judge John E. Steele on 9/12/2011. (RKR)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF FLORIDA
FORT MYERS DIVISION
STATE
FARM
MUTUAL
INSURANCE COMPANY

AUTOMOBILE

Plaintiff,
vs.

Case No.

2:11-cv-161-FtM-29DNF

RICHARD E. COCKRAM and ERIC POWERS,
Defendants.
___________________________________
OPINION AND ORDER
This matter comes before the Court on review of the Case
Management Report (Doc. #15). This case was filed in federal court
on the basis of diversity of citizenship under Title 28, United
States Code, Section 1332.

(Doc. #1.)

Because the Complaint

insufficiently supports subject matter jurisdiction, the Court will
require it to be supplemented before proceeding further with this
case.
Diversity

jurisdiction

requires

complete

diversity

of

citizenship, and that the matter in controversy exceed the sum or
value of $75,000, exclusive of interest and costs.

28 U.S.C.

§ 1332(a); Morrison v. Allstate Indem. Co., 228 F.3d 1255, 1261
(11th Cir. 2000).

“In order to be a citizen of a State within the

meaning of the diversity statute, a natural person must both be a
citizen of the United States and be domiciled within the State.”
Newman-Green, Inc. v. Alfonzo-Larrain, 490 U.S. 826, 828 (1989).
Pleading residency is not the equivalent of pleading domicile.

Molinos Valle Del Cibao, C. Por A. v. Lama, 633 F.3d 1330, 1342
n.12 (11th Cir. 2011); Corporate Mgmt. Advisors, Inc. v. Artjen
Complexus, Inc., 561 F.3d 1294, 1297 (11th Cir. 2009); Taylor v.
Appleton, 30 F.3d 1365, 1367 (11th Cir. 1994).

“A person’s

domicile is the place of his true, fixed, and permanent home and
principal establishment, and to which he has the intention of
returning whenever he is absent therefrom.” McCormick v. Aderholt,
293 F.3d 1254, 1257-58 (11th Cir. 2002)(internal quotations and
citations omitted).
The Complaint alleges that each defendant is a “resident” of
the

State

of

Florida

(Doc.

#1,

¶¶6,

7).

Because

this

is

insufficient to allege the citizenship of either defendant, the
Court will require the Complaint to be supplemented.
Accordingly, it is now
ORDERED:
1. Plaintiff shall file a Supplement to the Complaint within
TWENTY-ONE (21) DAYS of the date of this Opinion and Order setting
forth a sufficient factual basis for the citizenship of each
defendant.
2.

The Court will defer entry of the Case Management and

Scheduling Order pending the filing of the supplement.
DONE AND ORDERED at Fort Myers, Florida, this
September, 2011.

-2-

12th

day of