Kirkendoll v. Brookshires Grocery Co et al

Filing 5

MEMORANDUM ORDER : Defendants will be allowed until December 30, 2011 to file an Amended Notice of Removal to allege with specificity the facts relevant to citizenship and Specialty Risk Services, LLC. If the entity is not a limited liability company, as its name suggests, that should be explained in detail. Signed by Magistrate Judge Mark L Hornsby on 12/8/2011. (crt,Kennedy, T)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF LOUISIANA
SHREVEPORT DIVISION

SHIRLEY KIRKENDOLL

CIVIL ACTION NO. 11-cv-2055

VERSUS

JUDGE STAGG

BROOKSHIRES GROCERY CO., ET AL

MAGISTRATE JUDGE HORNSBY

MEMORANDUM ORDER
Defendants removed this case based on an assertion of diversity jurisdiction, so they
bear the burden of establishing facts that warrant the exercise of that form of subject-matter
jurisdiction. The court notes, without passing on any other jurisdictional issues, that the
citizenship of one defendant is not alleged adequately.
The petition names among the three defendants Specialty Risk Services, LLC. The
Notice of Removal identifies that defendant by the same name, which indicates it is a limited
liability company. When alleging citizenship, however, the Notice of Removal states that
Specialty is “incorporated under the laws of Delaware with its principal place of business in
Memphis, Tennessee.”
The citizenship of an LLC is determined by the citizenship of all of its members, with
its state of organization or principal place of business being irrelevant. Harvey v. Grey Wolf
Drilling Co., 542 F.3d 1077 (5th Cir. 2008). If the members are themselves partnerships,
LLCs, corporations or other form of entity, their citizenship must be alleged in accordance
with the rules applicable to that entity, and the citizenship must be traced through however

many layers of members or partners there may be. Feaster v. Grey Wolf Drilling Co., 2007
WL 3146363 (W.D. La. 2007). The court has explained the need for such detail in cases such
as Burford v. State Line Gathering System, LLC, 2009 WL 2487988 (W.D. La. 2009).
Defendants will be allowed until December 30, 2011 to file an Amended Notice of
Removal to allege with specificity the facts relevant to citizenship and Specialty Risk
Services, LLC. If the entity is not a limited liability company, as its name suggests, that
should be explained in detail.
THUS DONE AND SIGNED in Shreveport, Louisiana, this 8th day of December,
2011.

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