Trocchio v. Empanada Mama LLC

Background

Frank Trocchio filed a complaint against Empanada Mama LLC, Hermes 558 LLC, and 558 Seventh Ave Corp. The complaint stated that venue was proper under a statute the court found inapplicable to a lawsuit against private entities. The court construed the complaint as alleging diversity-of-citizenship jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1332.

Jurisdictional Deficiencies

Diversity jurisdiction generally requires that the parties be citizens of different states and that the amount in controversy exceed $75,000. The court held that the complaint did not adequately allege the citizenship of any party.

For Trocchio, the complaint alleged residence in Chicago, Illinois and citizenship of the United States, but did not identify the state where he was domiciled. Residence and domicile are not necessarily the same for jurisdictional purposes.

For Empanada Mama LLC and Hermes 558 LLC, the complaint identified each as a limited liability company organized under New York law and maintaining a New York address. The court explained that a limited liability company has the citizenship of each of its members, so the complaint needed to identify the members and their citizenship. It did not do so.

For 558 Seventh Ave Corp, the complaint alleged incorporation under New York law and a New York address. The court explained that a corporation is also a citizen of the state where its principal place of business is located. An address alone did not establish that the corporation’s principal place of business was in New York.

Ruling

Because the complaint failed to plead subject-matter jurisdiction, the court dismissed it without prejudice and with leave to replead. Plaintiff has 30 days to file an amended complaint that properly alleges subject-matter jurisdiction. If no amended complaint is filed within that period, the clerk is directed to terminate the action.

Judge Vernon S. Broderick issued the order on July 2, 2025.