Garcia Velez et al v. LSL Logistics LLC et al

Filing 9

ORDER, It is hereby ORDERED that, on or before March 10, 2025, Defendants shall amend their Notice of Removal to allege the citizenship of each constituent person or entity comprising LSL Logistics LLC (including the state of incorporation and pri ncipal place of business of any corporate entity member). If, by that date, Defendants are unable to amend their Notice of Removal to truthfully allege complete diversity of citizenship, then the action will be remanded to the Supreme Court of New York, County of Bronx, without further notice to either party. SO ORDERED. ( Amended Pleadings due by 3/10/2025.) (Signed by Judge Jesse M. Furman on 3/7/25) (yv)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
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:
ISRAEL GARCIA VELEZ and LISA VONGNARATH, :
:
Plaintiffs,
:
-v:
:
LSL LOGISTICS LLC and CESAR OMAR ORTIZ
:
ORTIZ,
:
:
:
Defendants.
:
:
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25-CV-1412 (JMF)
ORDER

JESSE M. FURMAN, United States District Judge:
On February 19, 2025, Defendants filed a Notice of Removal in which they invoked the
Court’s subject-matter jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1332. See ECF No. 1, at 5. On
February 24, 2025, the Court issued an order noting deficiencies in the Notice of Removal and
ordering Defendants to file an amended notice on or before March 10, 2025. See ECF No. 5. On
March 6, 2025, Defendants filed an Amended Notice of Removal. See ECF No. 8.
Although Defendants’ Amended Notice of Removal cures one deficiency in the original
Notice, it still fails to properly allege the citizenship of Defendant LSL Logistics LLC. As the
Court noted in its February 24, 2025 Order, a limited liability company (“LLC”) is deemed to be
a citizen of each state of which its members are citizens. See, e.g., Handelsman v. Bedford Vill.
Assocs. L.P., 213 F.3d 48, 51-52 (2d Cir. 2000). Thus, a notice of removal premised upon
diversity of citizenship must allege the citizenship of natural persons who are members of an
LLC and the place of incorporation and principal place of business of any corporate entities that
are members of the LLC. See id.; see also, e.g., In re Bank of Am. Corp. Sec., Derivatives, and
ERISA Litig., 757 F. Supp. 2d 260, 334 n.17 (S.D.N.Y. 2010); Lewis v. Allied Bronze LLC, No.

07 Civ. 1621 (BMC), 2007 WL 1299251, at *1-2 (E.D.N.Y. May 2, 2007) (remanding removed
action for lack of diversity jurisdiction). Defendants’ unsupported statement that “upon
information and belief, the LLC members [of LSL Logistics LLC] are not citizens of the states in
which the removing party is a citizen” does not satisfy this requirement. Moreover, there is no
basis to allege only “upon information and belief” where, as here, the LLC is the removing party.
The Court will give Defendants one last chance to address these issues. Accordingly, it is
hereby ORDERED that, on or before March 10, 2025, Defendants shall amend their Notice of
Removal to allege the citizenship of each constituent person or entity comprising LSL Logistics
LLC (including the state of incorporation and principal place of business of any corporate entity
member). If, by that date, Defendants are unable to amend their Notice of Removal to truthfully
allege complete diversity of citizenship, then the action will be remanded to the Supreme Court
of New York, County of Bronx, without further notice to either party.
SO ORDERED.
Dated: March 7, 2025
New York, New York

__________________________________
JESSE M. FURMAN
United States District Judge

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