Travaglio v. American Express Company et al

Filing 57

ORDER: Plaintiff-Appellant Tina Marie Travaglio is directed to submit a response to the jurisdictional questions reproduced in this Order on or before March 21, 2013. Defendants-Appellees are directed to submit any additional information they would l ike the Court to consider regarding the jurisdictional questions on or before March 21, 2013. If no additional information is submitted by Defendants-Appellees, the Court will consider the response submitted to the Eleventh Circuit by American Express and HealthExtras on November 8, 2012, and the response submitted to the Eleventh Circuit by Bank of Newport on November 14, 2012, in determining citizenship of the parties. Signed by Judge Virginia M. Hernandez Covington on 3/12/2013. (LRM)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF FLORIDA
TAMPA DIVISION
TINA MARIE TRAVAGLIO,
Plaintiff-Appellant,
v.

Case No. 8:10-cv-1311-T-33AEP

AMERICAN EXPRESS COMPANY, ET AL.,
Defendants-Appellees.
_____________________________________/
ORDER
This matter comes before the Court pursuant to the
Eleventh

Circuit’s

Limited

Remand

Order

issued

March

1,

2013. (Doc. # 56). For the reasons that follow, PlaintiffAppellant

Tina

Marie

Travaglio

is

directed

to

submit

a

response to the jurisdictional questions reproduced in this
Order

on

or

before

Defendants-Appellees

March
American

21,

2013.

Express

Furthermore,
Company,

if

American

Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc. (together,
“American Express”), HealthExtras, Inc.,1 or Bank of Newport
wish to submit any additional information for consideration
regarding the jurisdictional questions, they are directed
1

During the course of this action, HealthExtras, Inc. has
also been known as Catalyst Health Solutions, Inc. (Doc. #
15 at 1) and is currently known as Catamaran Health
Solutions, LLC (Am. Ex. Resp. at 2). In the interest of
clarity, the entity is referred to as HealthExtras
throughout this Order.

to do so on or before March 21, 2013. If no additional
information is submitted by Defendants-Appellees, the Court
will rely on the response submitted to the Eleventh Circuit
by American Express and HealthExtras on November 8, 2012
(Am. Ex. Resp.), and the response submitted to the Eleventh
Circuit

by

Bank

of

Newport

on

November

14,

2012

(Bank

Resp.), to determine citizenship of the parties.
Discussion
On June 9, 2010, Travaglio filed a one count complaint
against Defendants-Appellees. (Doc. # 1). The single count
was

titled

“Count

1

-

Deception,

Fraud,

Bad

Faith,

Conspiracy Florida Statutes 624.155(b), et al.” (Id. at 4).
American Express and Bank of Newport moved to dismiss the
complaint
12(b)(6)

pursuant
(Doc.

to
10,

##

Federal
25),

Rule
and

of

Civil

Procedure

HealthExtras

moved

to

dismiss the complaint and to quash service of process (Doc.
#

15).

Travaglio

filed

responses

in

opposition

to

the

motions. (Doc. ## 12, 29, 28).
On

February

9,

2011,

the

Court

granted

Defendants-

Appellees’ motions with prejudice and dismissed the case.
(Doc. # 42). Travaglio filed a notice of appeal to the
Eleventh
October

Circuit
31,

on
2012,

November
the

7,

2011.

Eleventh
2

(Doc.

#

Circuit

52).

On

issued

jurisdictional
whether

questions

complete

diversity

to

the

exists

parties
in

the

to

ascertain

case.

American

Express and HealthExtras responded to the jurisdictional
questions on November

8, 2012.

Bank of Newport filed a

response to the jurisdictional questions on November 14,
2012,

adopting

and

incorporating

by

reference

American

Express and HealthExtras’ responses to the three questions.
Plaintiff failed to file a response to the questions.
On its own motion, the Eleventh Circuit remanded the
case to this Court “for the limited purpose of determining
the citizenship of all parties at the time the action was
filed.” (Doc. # 56 at 2). The Court will consider responses
to the jurisdictional questions in determining citizenship
of

the

parties.

The

jurisdictional

questions

are

follows:
1. Address whether this case involves a “direct
action against the insurer of a policy or
contract of liability insurance.” 28 U.S.C. §
1332(c)(1). If so, address what effect this has
on
the
district
court’s
subject
matter
jurisdiction. See 28 U.S.C. § 1332(a), (c)(1)(A).
2. Address whether the pleadings sufficiently
alleged diversity of the parties so as to invoke
the district court’s subject matter jurisdiction
in this case, specifically the citizenship of:
a.
plaintiff Tina Marie Travaglio. 28
U.S.C. § 1332(a); Molinos Valle Del Cibao,
C. por A. v. Lama, 633 F.3d 1330, 1342 n.12
3

as

(11th Cir. 2011) (noting that the complaint
must allege the citizenship, not residence,
of individuals); AND
b.
the various defendants. 28 U.S.C. §
1332(c)(1); Am. Motorists Ins. Co. v. Am.
Emp. Ins. Co., 600 F.2d 15, 16 n.1 (5th Cir.
1979) (stating that a corporation is deemed
a citizen of every state by which it has
been incorporated and of the state where it
has its principal place of business, and
that the plaintiffs are required to provide
this information in their pleadings).
3. If diversity jurisdiction was not established
in the district court, address whether an
amendment of the allegations of jurisdiction is
now required. 28 U.S.C. § 1653; Mallory & Evans
Contractors & Eng’rs. LLC v. Tuskegee Univ., 663
F.3d 1304, 1305 (11th Cir. 2011).
Accordingly, it is
ORDERED, ADJUDGED, and DECREED:
(1)

Plaintiff-Appellant Tina Marie Travaglio is directed
to submit a response to the jurisdictional questions
reproduced in this Order on or before March 21, 2013.

(2)

Defendants-Appellees

are

directed

to

submit

any

additional information they would like the Court to
consider regarding the jurisdictional questions on or
before March 21, 2013. If no additional information is
submitted

by

consider

the

Circuit

by

Defendants-Appellees,
response
American

submitted
Express
4

and

the
to

Court
the

will

Eleventh

HealthExtras

on

November 8, 2012, and the response submitted to the
Eleventh Circuit by Bank of Newport on November 14,
2012, in determining citizenship of the parties.
DONE and ORDERED in Chambers, in Tampa, Florida, this
12th day of March, 2013.

Copies: All Counsel of Record

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