O'Dell v. Speedway LLC

Filing 8

OPINION AND ORDER: Defendant is ORDERED to file on or before 11/21/2023, a supplemental jurisdictional statement that identifies the name and citizenship of each member of Defendant Speedway LLC, and then traces the member's citizenship through all applicable layers as outlined in order. Signed by Magistrate Judge Susan L Collins on 11/14/2023. (mrm)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF INDIANA
FORT WAYNE DIVISION
NANCY O’DELL,
Plaintiff,
v.
SPEEDWAY LLC,
Defendant.

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) Cause No. 1:23-cv-00474-HAB-SLC
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OPINION AND ORDER

On November 9, 2023, Defendant removed this action to this Court from the Noble
County Circuit Court, alleging diversity of citizenship as the basis for jurisdiction under 28
U.S.C. § 1332. (ECF 1). Subject matter jurisdiction is the first issue that must be addressed,
Baker v. IBP, Inc., 357 F.3d 685, 687 (7th Cir. 2004), and thus, the Court raises the issue sua
sponte, pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(h)(3).
Defendant’s allegations about its citizenship in the notice of removal require one point of
clarification. Defendant, a limited liability company (LLC), recites that it is “wholly owned by
SEI Speedway Holdings, LLC,” which in turn is “wholly owned by 7-Eleven, Inc., a Texas
corporation with its principal place of business in Texas.” (ECF 1 ¶ 2). But as this Court has oft
observed, the citizenship of a limited liability company (LLC) “for purposes of . . . diversity
jurisdiction is the citizenship of its members.” Cosgrove v. Bartolotta, 150 F.3d 729, 731 (7th
Cir. 1998) (emphasis added).1
As such, the Court must be advised of the identity and citizenship of each member of an

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Consequently, Defendant’s recitation that it is “a Delaware LLC, with its principal place of business in
Texas” (ECF 1 ¶ 2), is irrelevant for purposes of determining its citizenship for diversity jurisdiction.

LLC for purposes of diversity jurisdiction. See, e.g., Guar. Nat’l Title Co. v. J.E.G. Assocs., 101
F.3d 57, 59 (7th Cir. 1996) (explaining that the court would “need to know the name and
citizenship(s)” of each partner of a partnership for diversity jurisdiction purposes). For any
member who is an unincorporated association such as an LLC or partnership, Defendant must
trace the member’s citizenship through all applicable layers of ownership to ensure that no
member shares a common citizenship with Plaintiff. Mut. Assignment & Indem. Co. v.
Lind-Waldock & Co., LLC, 364 F.3d 858, 861 (7th Cir. 2004).
Therefore, rather than summarily alleging that it or another LLC is “wholly owned” by
another entity, Defendant is ORDERED to file on or before November 21, 2023, a supplemental
jurisdictional statement that identifies the name and citizenship of each member of Defendant
Speedway LLC, and then traces the member’s citizenship through all applicable layers. See
Chase v. Shop ‘N Save Warehouse Foods, Inc., 110 F.3d 424, 427 (7th Cir. 1997) (stating that
the party seeking to invoke federal diversity jurisdiction bears the burden of demonstrating that
the requirement of complete diversity has been met).
SO ORDERED.
Entered this 14th day of November 2023.
/s/ Susan Collins
Susan Collins
United States Magistrate Judge

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