Weston v. Wal Mart Inc

Filing 6

ORDER directing Weston to file an amended complaint alleging a sufficient basis for subject-matter jurisdiction in this Court. Weston has until August 2, 2010 or her case will be dismissed for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction. Signed by Judge Michael J. Reagan on 7/12/2010. (pjm)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS DELORES WESTON, Plaintiff, v. WAL-MART INC., Defendant. ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ORDER REAGAN, District Judge: Plaintiff Delores Weston recently filed a complaint against Wal-Mart, Inc. (Doc. 1) and seeks leave to proceed in forma pauperis in this Court (Doc. 2). Before the Court can consider her motion to proceed without prepayment of fees, the Court must first address a serious jurisdictional problem. Weston's complaint appears to allege a negligence or premises liability case based on Illinois state law, meaning that subject-matter jurisdiction in this Court could only be based upon diversity of citizenship between the parties. See 28 U.S.C. § 1332(a) (2006) (noting that the district courts have subject-matter jurisdiction over civil actions that have more than $75,000 in controversy and are between parties that are citizens of different states). Because Weston's complaint contains no allegations regarding the citizenship of the parties or the amount in controversy, the Court doubts the presence of subject-matter jurisdiction. The Court DIRECTS Weston to file an amended complaint alleging a sufficient basis for jurisdiction in this Court. Weston has until August 2, 2010 or her case will be DISMISSED for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction. IT IS SO ORDERED. DATED July 12, 2010.

Case No. 10-CV-0482-MJR-PMF

s/ Michael J. Reagan MICHAEL J. REAGAN United States District Judge