Shelton, et al v. Young's Welding and Machine Shop, LLC

Filing 36

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER - The Plaintiffs William C. Shelton and Alecia Shelton may file an Amended Complaint on or before January 23, 2015, identifying the citizenship of each member in Defendant Youngs Welding and Machine Shop, LLC; If an Amended Co mplaint is filed, Defendant Young's Welding and Machine Shop, LLC, will respond to the Amended Complaint within 14 days of the filing of the Amended Complaint; In the absence of the filing of an Amended Complaint, this action will be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction; and Party Plaintiffs Complaint (Filing No. 26) will be held in abeyance pending the Court's review of amended pleadings. ( Amended Complaint due by 1/23/2015 Ordered by Chief Judge Laurie Smith Camp. (MKR)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF NEBRASKA
WILLIAM SHELTON and ALECIA
SHELTON,
CASE NO. 8:14CV165
Plaintiffs,
v.

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

YOUNG'S WELDING AND MACHINE
SHOP, LLC,
Defendant and ThirdParty Plaintiff,
v.
SHOW-ME SHORTLINE COMPANY, LLC
Third-Party Defendant

This matter is before the Court on the Court’s own motion. (Any party or the
court may, at any time, raise the issue of subject matter jurisdiction. S.D. Farm Bureau,
Inc. v. Hazeltine, 340 F.3d 583, 591 (8th Cir.2003).)
The Plaintiff’s Complaint (Filing No. 1) asserts that this Court has jurisdiction over
the action pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §1332(a)(1), the statute that confers federal district
courts with original jurisdiction over “civil actions where the matter in controversy
exceeds the sum or value of $75,000.00, exclusive of interest and costs, and is between
– (1) citizens of different States[.]” Plaintiffs allege that they are residents of Nebraska
and the Defendant is a limited liability company organized and existing under the laws
of the State of Missouri, with its principal place of business in Missouri. (Filing No. 1, ¶¶
1-3).

“[A]n LLC's citizenship is that of its members for diversity jurisdiction purposes[.]”
GMAC Commercial Credit LLC v. Dillard Dept. Stores, Inc., 357 F.3d 827, 829 (8th Cir.
2004). “An LLC is a citizen of every state of which one of its members is a citizen, but is
not a citizen of its state of organization unless a member of the LLC is a citizen of that
state.” E3 Biofuels, LLC v. Biothane, LLC, 6 F.Supp.3d 993, 998 (D.Neb. Mar 19, 2014)
Citing GMAC at 829, and OnePoint Solutions, LLC v. Borchert, 486 F.3d 342, 347 n. 4
(8th Cir.2007).
Based on the allegations in the Complaint, the Court cannot infer that it has
jurisdiction over the Plaintiffs’ claims, nor over the Defendant’s Third-Party Complaint
(Filing No. 20). The Plaintiffs will be given leave to file an Amended Complaint on or
before January 23, 2015, identifying the citizenship of each member in Defendant
Young’s Welding and Machine Shop, LLC. If any such member is a corporation, the
state of incorporation as well as the principal place of business must be identified. If
any such member is another limited liability company, the citizenship of each member of
such limited liability company also must be identified. Defendant Young’s Welding and
Machine Shop, LLC, will respond to the Amended Complaint within 14 days of the filing
of the Amended Complaint. The Motion to Dismiss Third-Party Complaint submitted by
Third-Party Defendant Show-Me Shortline Company, LLC, will be held in abeyance
pending the Court’s consideration of the Plaintiffs’ Amended Complaint and the
Defendant’s responsive pleading.

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IT IS ORDERED:
1. The Plaintiffs William C. Shelton and Alecia Shelton may file an Amended
Complaint on or before January 23, 2015, identifying the citizenship of each member in
Defendant Young’s Welding and Machine Shop, LLC;
2. If an Amended Complaint is filed, Defendant Young’s Welding and Machine
Shop, LLC, will respond to the Amended Complaint within 14 days of the filing of the
Amended Complaint;
3. In the absence of the filing of an Amended Complaint, this action will be
dismissed for lack of jurisdiction; and
4. Third-Party Defendant Show-Me Shortline Company LLC’s Motion to Dismiss
Third-Party Plaintiff’s Complaint (Filing No. 26) will be held in abeyance pending the
Court’s review of amended pleadings.
Dated this 23rd day of December, 2014.
BY THE COURT:

s/Laurie Smith Camp
Chief United States District Judge

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