Wheeler et al v. American Economy Insurance Company

Filing 20

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER re: 19 First MOTION to Amend/Correct Complaint filed by Plaintiff Don Wheeler motion is DENIED.. Signed by District Judge Rodney W. Sippel on 9/19/13. (LGK)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
NORTHERN DIVISION
DON WHEELER, et al.,
Plaintiffs,
vs.
AMERICAN ECONOMY INS. CO.,
Defendant.

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Case No. 2:13CV39 RWS

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
This matter is before me on plaintiffs’ motion to amend their complaint. In this removed
case, plaintiffs seek leave to join Wal-Mart Stores East, L.P. as a defendant. The asserted basis
for removal of this case was diversity jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1332. Plaintiffs’ proposed
amended complaint does not properly plead citizenship of the proposed additional defendant.
See Carden v. Arkoma Assocs., 494 U.S. 185, 187 (1990). Because plaintiffs’ complaint does
not plead the citizenship of all the members of the proposed limited partnership defendant, I
cannot determine whether granting leave to amend would destroy this Court’s subject matter
jurisdiction, requiring remand. See 28 U.S.C. § 1447(e) (“If after removal the plaintiff seeks to
join additional defendants whose joinder would destroy subject matter jurisdiction, the court may
deny joinder, or permit joinder and remand the action to the State court.”). For this reason, I will
deny leave to amend without prejudice. Plaintiffs may again seek leave to amend by filing a
motion and attaching a proposed amended complaint that properly pleads the citizenship of all
parties, including the proposed additional defendant.1
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Plaintiffs’ state-court petition did not properly plead the citizenship of defendant
American Economy, either, but as the removing party set out the basis for determining diversity
jurisdiction in its Notice of Removal, the Court was able to determine the basis for subject-matter

Accordingly,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that plaintiffs’ motion for leave to amend [#19] is denied
without prejudice.

RODNEY W. SIPPEL
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

Dated this 19th day of September, 2013.

jurisdiction. Plaintiffs’ proposed amended complaint should properly plead the citizenship of all
parties, including defendant American Economy.
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