JOHNSON v. CONFERENCE USA et al

Filing 6

ENTRY ON JURISDICTION - Therefore, the Plaintiff is ORDERED to file a Supplemental Jurisdictional Statement that establishes the Court's jurisdiction over this case. This statement should specifically identify the citizenship of the defendants. This Supplemental Jurisdictional Statement is due fourteen (14) days from the date of this Entry. **SEE ORDER** Signed by Judge Tanya Walton Pratt on 9/8/2016.(JLS)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF INDIANA
INDIANAPOLIS DIVISION
WILLIE JOHNSON, individually and on
behalf of all other similarly situated,
Plaintiff,
v.
CONFERENCE USA,
BIG EAST CONFERENCE, and
THE NATIONAL COLLEGIATE
ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION,
Defendants.

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No. 1:16-cv-02341-TWP-DKL

ENTRY ON JURISDICTION
It has come to the Court’s attention that the Plaintiff’s Class Action Complaint fails to
allege all of the facts necessary to determine whether this Court has subject matter jurisdiction
over this case. The Class Action Complaint alleges that this Court has jurisdiction based upon
diversity of citizenship. However, the Class Action Complaint fails to sufficiently allege the
citizenship of the defendants. Citizenship is the operative consideration for jurisdictional purposes.
See Meyerson v. Harrah’s East Chicago Casino, 299 F.3d 616, 617 (7th Cir. 2002) (“residence
and citizenship are not synonyms and it is the latter that matters for purposes of the diversity
jurisdiction”).
In class actions, “an unincorporated association shall be deemed to be a citizen of the State
where it has its principal place of business and the State under whose laws it is organized.” 28
U.S.C. § 1332(d)(10). “[T]he phrase ‘unincorporated association’ in section 1332(d)(10) . . .
carries the broader meaning used by the Supreme Court in deciding the citizenship of entities other
than corporations.” Bond v. Veolia Water Indianapolis, LLC, 571 F. Supp. 2d 905, 909 (S.D. Ind.

2008). Thus, in a class action, the citizenship of an entity that is not a corporation is determined
by the State where it has its principal place of business and the State under whose laws it is
organized.
The Plaintiff initiated this lawsuit by filing his Class Action Complaint, which alleges,
10. Defendant Conference USA is a collegiate athletic conference with its principal
office located at 5201 North O’Connor Blvd, Irving, Texas 75039. Defendant
Conference USA conducts business throughout this District, the State of Indiana,
and the United States.
11. Defendant Big East is a collegiate athletic conference with its principal office
located at 655 Third Avenue, New York, New York 10017. Defendant Big East
conducts business throughout this District, the State of Indiana, and the United
States.
12. Defendant NCAA is an unincorporated association with its principal office
located at 700 West Washington Street, Indianapolis, Indiana 46206. Defendant
NCAA conducts business throughout this District, the State of Indiana, and the
United States.
(Filing No. 1 at 3.) These allegations fail to specify the type of business entity of Defendants
Conference USA and Big East and fail to allege the State under whose laws they are organized.
The allegations also fail to identify the State under whose laws Defendant NCAA is organized.
The allegations are not sufficient to allow the Court to determine whether diversity jurisdiction
exists.
Therefore, the Plaintiff is ORDERED to file a Supplemental Jurisdictional Statement that
establishes the Court’s jurisdiction over this case. This statement should specifically identify the
citizenship of the defendants. This Supplemental Jurisdictional Statement is due fourteen (14)
days from the date of this Entry.
SO ORDERED.
Date: 9/8/2016

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Distribution:
William E. Winingham
WILSON KEHOE & WININGHAM
[e-mail]

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