Rayvion LLC v. Bailey Cable TV, Inc.

Filing 5

ORDER that Plaintiff file an Amended Complaint onor before April 4, 2016, that provides the information required by this Order. Signed by Judge William S. Duffey, Jr on 3/21/2016. (anc)

into subject matter jurisdiction sua sponte whenever it may be lacking.” Univ. of
S. Ala. v. Am. Tobacco Co., 168 F.3d 405, 410 (11th Cir. 1999). In this case
Plaintiff’s Complaint raises only questions of state law and the Court only could
have diversity jurisdiction over this matter.
Diversity jurisdiction exists where the amount in controversy exceeds
$75,000 and the suit is between citizens of different states. 28 U.S.C § 1332(a).
“Diversity jurisdiction, as a general rule, requires complete diversity—every
plaintiff must be diverse from every defendant.” Palmer Hosp. Auth. of Randolph
Cnty., 22 F.3d 1559, 1564 (11th Cir. 1994). “Citizenship for diversity purposes is
determined at the time the suit is filed.” MacGinnitie v. Hobbs Grp., LLC,
420 F.3d 1234, 1239 (11th Cir. 2005). “The burden to show the jurisdictional fact
of diversity of citizenship [is] on the . . . plaintiff.” King v. Cessna Aircraft Co.,
505 F.3d 1160, 1171 (11th Cir. 2007) (alteration and omission in original) (quoting
Slaughter v. Toye Bros. Yellow Cab Co., 359 F.2d 954, 956 (5th Cir. 1966)). A
limited liability company, unlike a corporation, is a citizen of any state of which
one of its members is a citizen, not of the state where the company was formed or
has it principal office. See Rolling Greens MHP, L.P. v. Comcast SCH Holdings
L.L.C., 374 F.3d 1020, 1022 (11th Cir. 2004).

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The Complaint does not adequately allege Plaintiff’s citizenship. Plaintiff
alleges only that it is “a Georgia company with its principal place of business
located at 4501 North Point Parkway, Suite 125, Alpharetta, GA 30022.” (Compl.
¶ 1). This allegation is insufficient. Plaintiff is required to allege the identity of all
of its members and their respective citizenship in order for the Court to determine
if it has subject matter jurisdiction. See Rolling Greens, 374 F.3d at 1022.
Accordingly, Plaintiff is required to file an amended complaint stating the
identities of its members and their respective citizenships.1 The Court notes that it
is required to dismiss this action unless Plaintiff provides the required supplement
alleging sufficient facts to show the Court’s jurisdiction. See Travaglio v. Am.
Express Co., 735 F.3d 1266, 1268-69 (11th Cir. 2013) (holding that the district
court must dismiss an action for lack of subject matter jurisdiction unless the
pleadings or record evidence establishes jurisdiction).

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“[W]hen an entity is composed of multiple layers of constituent entities, the
citizenship determination requires an exploration of the citizenship of the
constituent entities as far down as necessary to unravel fully the citizenship of the
entity before the court.” RES-GA Creekside Manor, LLC v. Star Home Builders,
Inc., No. 10-cv-207, 2011 WL 6019904, at *3 (N.D. Ga. Dec. 2, 2011) (quoting
Multibank 2009-1 RES-ADC Venture, LLC v. CRM Ventures, LLC, No.
10-cv-02001, 2010 WL 3632359, at *1 (D. Colo. Sept. 10, 2010)).
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Accordingly, for the foregoing reasons,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Plaintiff file an Amended Complaint on
or before April 4, 2016, that provides the information required by this Order.

SO ORDERED this 21st day of March, 2016.

_______________________________
WILLIAM S. DUFFEY, JR.
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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